A Venom 3 Leak May Have Teased A Key Marvel Villain (Again)

Contains possible spoilers for "Venom: The Last Dance"

Big secrets for blockbuster flicks have leaked out in odd ways over the years, and this small hint from the set of "Venom: The Last Dance" comes in a unique form that a symbiote would love — crew gifts. A tee-shirt and hat given to the "Venom 3" stunt team, posted on X (formerly Twitter) by @misterkrasinski on May 10, shows a Venom symbiote logo. The "e" on the shirt is a backward "3" in neon green and the logo on the hat shows Venom's face with three thin green scratch marks over it. The theme and coloring suggests that our titular antihero is about to collide with a familiar foe whose signature colors would make a can of Rockstar Energy Drink green with envy — Lasher.

You need to know before you see "Venom" that Lasher was introduced all the way back in 1993. He's a product of the Life Foundation, whose leader — Carlton Drake – decides to create an army of Venoms under Foundation control to combat Eddie Brock and his symbiote pal. Lasher itself has four brother symbiotes – Phage, Agony, Scream, and Riot — and is distinct among its brethren via its tentacle powers and green colors. Its bond with its host body is less than congenial, which might provide quite a contrast to Eddie's live-and-let-live connection with Venom. But Lasher and its brothers are also so powerful that it requires Venom to look up some superpowered friends to put a stop to the Foundation symbiotes.

The first time Lasher becomes a threat in the world of Marvel Comics, Spider-Man is forced to lean on Eddie Brock for an assist. It takes both heroes' might to destroy all five evil symbiotes. Peter Parker even has to use a metabolic accelerator to get ahead of the alien beings. The accelerator rapidly ages them all until they melt into piles of goo. Since some BTS photos hint that "Venom: The Last Dance" will be connected to "Spider-Man: No Way Home," it's quite possible that comic history could repeat itself in theatres.

But good and bad hasn't always been a black-and-white subject for Lasher; unlike Carnage, Lasher and its host in the comics world have sought Eddie Brock's help in trying to keep themselves from being overwhelmed by their alien friends. Original host Rámon Hernández fights to keep himself distinct from Lasher but ultimately loses that battle. In further comic book storylines, Lasher is resurrected as a more purely feral being who's able to bond with animals.

Fans will find out if Lasher will be the bane or the boon of Venom's existence — or if he's in the movie at all — when "Venom: The Last Dance" is released on October 25.