After 42 Years, Marvel Introduces Venom's Official Opposite Species

Published Jul 22, 2026, 9:30 PM EDT Nicolas Ayala is a Senior Writer for the Comics team at ScreenRant, with over five years of experience writing about Superhero media, action movies, and TV shows. Knull reveals the complete opposite of the symbiotes, who enter the Marvel Universe to overhaul Venom lore. Symbiotes rank among Marvel's most adaptable lifeforms, as their abilities scale dramatically according to the quality of their hosts and the unique evolutions they undergo over time. An ordinary symbiote makes an average host a dangerous opponent, but the gap between a typical member of the species and truly exceptional symbiotes is enormous. Venom and Carnage have evolved far beyond the limits of their race, and Eddie Brock has wielded the Enigma Force, ruled the symbiote hive as the King in Black, and transformed into the Illuminated. Knull connected the Klyntar, the Celestials, and the living abyss through a single origin in King in Black. Subsequent stories have continued to build on symbiote lore. The 2026 Knull solo series shows how the god of symbiotes seizes control of Thanos' Outriders, slays the Illuminated, and ultimately ascends as a god of light, leaving his nature as the embodiment of living darkness behind. Venom lore now reaches far beyond Spider-Man's world, and the upcoming Queen in Black only accelerates the evolution of Venom's extraterrestrial mythos. Earth faces a double apocalyptic threat in the form of God of Light Knull and Queen in Black Hela, both of whom are powerful enough to destroy entire planets effortlessly. Knull Creates The Seraphim, Symbiotes Of Light Queen In Black #1; Written By Al Ewing; Art By Iban Coello & Zé Carlos In the first preview pages for Al Ewing's Queen in Black #1 (via AIPT), Marvel reveals Knull's new ability. Using the power of light, Knull creates life, which he shapes into anthropomorphic soldiers he names "Seraphim." These beings barely resemble something organic, composed of sharp, angular, crystal-like shapes, with claws for feet and force fields for wings. Besides the first Seraphim, Knull teases the creation of these entities' "pet," which might be a new version of Knull's symbiote dragons, now made up of light crystals. As the God of Light, Knull is powerful enough to wipe the floor with the Illuminated and Thanos, and he can regenerate in record time from injuries that would kill the most durable villains in the Marvel Universe. His Seraphim and their "pets" may be just as durable and possibly on a similar level of strength. At this point, even though the comic bears her name, Hela might end up being Earth's last hope against the unstoppable Knull and his army. Knull's Seraphim Could Be Heroes In Disguise The Marvel Universe Could Use Beings Made Of Pure Light Right Now If it weren't for Knull's irredeemable nature, the Seraphim could be an invaluable weapon against the forces of darkness that abound in the Marvel Universe. Parallel to Queen in Black, Marvel's Earth is tormented by the Infernal Hulk, who's possessed by Eldest in her attempt to establish a new era of horrors. Eldest and the Infernal Hulk seemingly achieve their goals, as confirmed by the upcoming Hulk War. Meanwhile, Armageddon sees Doctor Doom and Steve Rogers team up against Mephisto, the latter of whom shows how easily he could take over entire planets with the help of countless demonic beings who hail directly from Hell. Marvel's Knull has already established that the power of light itself is stronger than the power of darkness, which the God of Symbiotes used to threaten the Earth and overpower nearly all Marvel powerhouses in King in Black. Besides its sheer power, the pure nature of light could represent the best weapon against dark supernatural threats like Mephisto, Dormammu, Nightmare, Eldest, the Infernal Hulk, and the Mother of Horrors. If Earth's Mightiest Heroes could weaponize light similarly to Knull, they could have the world's ultimate solution to a wide variety of malevolent entities in their hands. How do you think Knull will be defeated? Queen in Black #1 is available July 29 from Marvel Comics Created by David Michelinie, Todd McFarlane First Film Venom Latest Film Venom: Let There Be Carnage Upcoming Films Venom: The Last Dance Cast Tom Hardy, Michelle Williams, Woody Harrelson, Naomie Harris, Riz Ahmed, Reid Scott, Stephen Graham Movie(s) Venom, Venom: Let There Be Carnage, Venom: The Last Dance