| Director | Kelly Marcel |
|---|---|
| Genre | action film, science fiction film, superhero film, thriller film |
| Runtime | 109 min |
| Country | United States |
| Budget | $110 million |
| Box office | $478.9 million |
After returning from another universe, Eddie Brock and the Venom symbiote are drunk in a bar in Mexico. Still on the run after their recent battle with Carnage, the apparent murder of Patrick Mulligan makes international headlines with Eddie, who is falsely branded a prime suspect. He decides to set out for New York City to meet an old acquaintance in an attempt to clear his name — not before unwittingly leaving a bit of Venom at the bar. Meanwhile, a creature known as a Xenophage has begun tracking Eddie and Venom.
Soldier Rex Strickland oversees Imperium, a government operation at the site of the soon-to-be-decommissioned Area 51 for the capture and study of other symbiotes that have fallen to Earth. Mulligan, revealed to have survived his encounter with Carnage, is captured by Strickland. He is bonded with one of many contained symbiotes and questioned by Imperium researchers Dr. Teddy Paine and Sadie "Christmas" to learn about the symbiotes' purpose on Earth.
While traveling via the side of an airplane bound for New York City, Eddie and Venom are attacked by the Xenophage and forced to drop into the Nevada desert. Venom explains that Xenophages were sent to Earth by symbiote creator Knull to retrieve a Codex, forged when a symbiote resurrects its host; the Codex will free Knull from the prison the symbiotes trapped him in long ago. Having previously revived Eddie, Venom and Eddie are now carrying a Codex. After escaping both the Xenophage and Strickland and his team, Eddie hitches a ride to Las Vegas with a family of alien enthusiast hippies. Mulligan's symbiote informs Strickland of Knull's intentions with the Codex, which can only be destroyed if either Eddie or Venom dies.
In Las Vegas, after a reunion with Mrs. Chen, Eddie and Venom are ambushed by both the Xenophage and Strickland's team. The pair are separated and taken to Area 51. Sadie, sympathetic to the symbiotes, frees Venom, who re-bonds with Eddie after Strickland shoots him. This attracts the Xenophage, which devours Mulligan in the battle. Venom has the other confined symbiotes released, which bond with Sadie and the other scientists to fight off the Xenophage. Knull is signalled that the Codex has been found and sends more Xenophages to Earth, overwhelming the symbiotes. Realizing he must sacrifice himself to destroy the Codex and save the universe, Venom merges with the Xenophages, leads them to the acid tanks, and bids Eddie farewell. A mortally wounded Strickland has a change of heart about the symbiotes and sets off his grenades to destroy the Xenophages. Teddy bonds with a symbiote to save Sadie from the resulting explosion.
Eddie wakes up in a hospital, where a military official informs him that his brave actions at Area 51 have earned him an expungement, under the condition of keeping the events a secret. Eddie travels to New York City and visits the Statue of Liberty to honor Venom, who had desired to see the statue. In a mid-credits scene, Knull declares that the universe is no longer safe from him now that Venom has fallen. In a post-credits scene, the Mexican bartender—who was taken into custody by Strickland after Eddie left—escapes the burned remains of Area 51. Nearby, a black cockroach crawls out next to a broken vial that previously contained a sample of the Venom symbiote.