The first Venom: The Last Dance trailer generated discussion about a possible Spider-Man: No Way Home connection, but a new theory explains how the movie does not necessarily undo a past Marvel Cinematic Universe moment. Tom Hardy will return this October to put an end to the only successful franchise in Sony’s Spider-Man Universe so far. Venom: The Last Dance‘s first trailer has finally been released, teasing what fans can expect from the character’s final solo film, and the footage sparked serious debate about Sony walking back a major Spider-Man: No Way Home moment.

In the trailer, Chiwetel Ejiofor’s character was seemingly collecting the piece of the Venom symbiote that stayed behind in the MCU. Spider-Man: No Way Home‘s post-credits scene featured Hardy’s Eddie Brock at a bar in the MCU, with the character soon being teleported back to the SSU, with a piece of Venom staying behind. That tease was speculated to play a role in Tom Holland’s Spider-Man 4, with Peter Parker coming into contact with the symbiote, but Ejiofor’s Venom: The Last Dance character seemed to block that. However, a Venom: The Last Dance theory keeps Venom’s Spider-Man 4 hopes alive.

Venom: The Last Dance Theory’s MCU Connection Explained

There Are Two Pieces Of The Symbiote

The situation is tricky as Ted Lasso‘s Dani Rojas actor Cristo Fernández returns in Venom: The Last Dance‘s trailer as seemingly the same bartender he played in Spider-Man: No Way Home. The character was talking to Hardy’s Eddie Brock about MCU events in a bar in Mexico when Eddie was taken back to the SSU, and the piece of Venom stayed in the MCU. That said, a new Venom: The Last Dance trailer theory shared on Twitter by @Beyonder_10 explains how the SSU film’s trailer might have been misleading.

According to the theory, there are two different versions of the bar and the bartender. Eddie Brock would have returned to the SSU, leaving a piece of Venom behind for Holland’s Peter Parker to come into contact with in Spider-Man 4. Then, the character returned to the SSU in the same exact place he was in the MCU, so the bartender in the Venom: The Last Dance trailer is a variant of the MCU one, and Venom left another piece of the symbiote behind as he arrived. This SSU part of Venom is then collected by Ejiofor’s character.

Why Venom 3 Undoing Spider-Man: No Way Home’s Ending Makes No Sense

There Are Too Many Issues

Venom: The Last Dance retconning Spider-Man: No Way Home‘s post-credits scene would be one of the worst moves Sony has done. Besides killing any potential for a future symbiote storyline in the MCU, the move would face a few issues. First is the fact that Ejiofor’s character is the one to retrieve the piece of the symbiote seen in the Venom: The Last Dance trailer. The actor is already known to MCU fans, as Ejiofor has played the sorcerer Mordo for years in the franchise. His SSU character going to the MCU would make the third Venom‘s story too convoluted.

Besides, if Ejiofor’s mystery character were to collect the Venom piece in the MCU, then Venom: The Last Dance would inevitably have to be a multiversal movie in some way. However, that is not at all what the trailer showed will be the case. The story seems to be much more focused on the origin of Hardy’s Venom catching up to him than thrusting the characters into another universe. As the film has been confirmed to be the SSU’s final Venom entry, then it is better that it is self-contained and leaves the multiverse for other projects.

Tom Holland’s Spider-Man 4 Is Perfectly Set Up To Feature The Symbiote

The Hero Is At His Lowest Point

Spider-Man: No Way Home has set up the perfect way for Tom Holland’s Spider-Man 4 to feature the symbiote. Peter Parker will be ready for a classic Spider-Man story in his next solo film, with the character going through the hardest time yet in his life, as the Green Goblin killed Aunt May and Doctor Strange’s spell made everyone he loved forget Peter. That setup makes it perfect for Peter to be influenced by the symbiote, donning the black suit and becoming more aggressive.

That could lead to the first time there is a multi-movie arc for the black suit, with Holland’s Peter Parker wearing the symbiote from Spider-Man 4 until Avengers: Secret Wars. The final movie in the Multiverse Saga would make for a poetic ending to the MCU’s symbiote story, as Spider-Man first donned the black suit in the comics’ Secret Wars event. With the MCU perfectly set up for the symbiote saga, Venom: The Last Dance undoing Spider-Man: No Way Home‘s Venom scene would make no sense at all, which is why the SSU theory could be on to something.