It's official, Venom (2018) is a hit. Sony took a risk by making a movie about one of Spider-Man's greatest villains without including the wall-crawler in it, but their gamble paid off. While the movie received a mixed response from critics, it seems like audiences generally agreed that it was a fun, if flawed, film. Whenever something is successful in Hollywood, that means one thing: sequels. What this means for Sony's proposed Spider-Man cinematic universe is still unclear, but it's pretty clear that a Venom 2 is coming. Eddie Brock will definitely return to bite the heads off supervillains (and petty thieves too).

While Venom set up some ideas for a sequel, nothing is set in stone. In fact, it's common for comic book movies to start dropping clues for characters, but then wait several movies to bring those ideas to fruition. Also, since Sony wants to build an expanded film series, it's likely that they'll want to use the sequel to set up potential spin-offs. Basically, anything is possible for the eventual movie, and it's time to start speculating. Venom has been involved with a ton of great stories and crossovers, and there are plenty of characters that can enrichen his cinematic storyline, while also expanding Sony's universe as well. Some are obvious, but there are a lot of obscure and interesting connections as well.

15 SIN-EATER

While Venom blames Spider-Man for his downfall, he should really be mad at the Sin-Eater. The masked villain first appeared in Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man #107 (1985) by Peter David and Rich Buckler. His victims were all people he considered sinners for abusing their authority. While he never encountered Venom, he's responsible for the villain's origins.

It was later revealed that Eddie Brock published a series of interviews with a man claiming to be the Sin-Eater. Brock eventually revealed the man's identity, but it turned out he was talking to a compulsive confessor. When Spider-Man caught the real Sin-Eater, Brock was fired and blamed the hero for his troubles.

14 MAC GARGAN

One of Spider-Man's earliest villains only made a brief cameo in Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), and only in his pre-supervillain persona. In the comics, Gargan first appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man #19 (1964) by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. He was hired by J Jonah Jameson to spy on Peter Parker, and was later transformed into the villainous Scorpion at the newspaper man's request.

Scorpion never had a major connection to Venom until decades later, when Eddie Brock auctioned off the symbiote. After abandoning the host who bought it, the alien bonded with Gargan, who terrorized Spidey as Venom for several years after that.

13 SHRIEK

First appearing in Spider-Man Unlimited #1 (1993) by Tom Defalco and Ron Lim, Shriek immediately proved how crazy she is. She was locked up in Ravencroft Asylum, and caught Carnage's attention during one of his escapes. Shriek was just as into chaos as he was, and the two teamed up, kicking off the Maximum Carnage storyline.

Since then, she and Carnage have had an on-again/off-again "relationship." This has put her squarely against Venom, who hates Cletus Kasady. As her name implies, her powers are sound based. Shriek can manipulate sound and cause confusion in her opponents, and even heighten their aggression. Considering that sound is one of Venom's major weaknesses, this makes her a formidable threat.

12 CARRION

Some villains are truly tragic. Malcolm McBride was infected with a virus developed by Miles Warren, which transformed him into a clone of the villainous Carrion. This version of the villain first appeared in The Spectacular Spider-Man #149 (1989) by Gerry Conway and Sal Buscema. His most horrifying power was the ability to disintegrate organic material just by touching it.

He became associated with the symbiotes during the Maximum Carnage storyline when he became part of Carnage's "family." While Kasady didn't take the "father" role all that seriously, Shriek really took to being Carrion's "mother." If Shriek and Carnage appear in Venom's sequel, there's definitely a place for Carrion.

11 MR NEGATIVE

A relatively new Spider-Man foe, Mister Negative has quickly made a big splash. He debuted in Amazing Spider-Man #546 by Dan Slott and Steve McNiven, but he didn't become associated with the symbiotes until the New Ways to Die (2008) storyline. Eddie Brock had started working at a soup kitchen owned by Negative's alter ego, Mr Li. Unbeknownst to Brock, Li heals his disease, which comes with an unforeseen side effect.

Brock becomes caustic to symbiotes, and due to remnants of the Venom symbiote in his bloodstream, he develops an Anti-Venom symbiote. Due to Mister Negative's appearance in the PlayStation 4 Spider-Man game, along with his ability to create Anti-Venoms, he would definitely make an exciting addition to the next Venom film.

10 SANDMAN

Flint Marko had a crazy couple of decades. He started off as a villain in The Amazing Spider-Man #4 (1963) by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. Then, he transitioned into being a hero, and spent years fighting alongside Spider-Man. He didn't have too many interactions with Venom until John Byrne reverted both characters back to being villains during his run on Amazing Spider-Man.

Venom actually had a huge impact on Sandman's story. Eddie and Flint both joined the Sinister Six, and during a fight, Venom took a bite out of Sandman. This caused Marko to destabilize, which caused Sandman to slowly deteriorate over several years.

9 DR OCTOPUS

One of Spider-Man's greatest villains debuted in The Amazing Spider-Man #3 (1963) by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. Since then, Dr. Octopus has terrorized Spider-Man worse than any other villain (aside from maybe Norman Osborn). Despite this, his greatest connection to Venom didn't actually happen in the comics.

Ock and Carnage teamed up in the 2000 Spider-Man video game, placing the good doctor in Venom's crosshairs. Ock actually bonded with the Carnage symbiote for the game's final level, which is considered one of the most frustrating levels in any Spider-Man game ever. Still, the game is fondly remembered and including Ock in the next Venom movie could lead to some fun references.

8 NORMAN OSBORN

Spider-Man's other greatest arch-enemy, the Green Goblin, debuted in The Amazing Spider-Man #14 (1964) by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. Norman Osborn has taken on several other personas, and most recently bonded with the Carnage Symbiote to create the Red Goblin. This gave him the powers of the symbiote, but his Goblin-formula took away the weaknesses, making this one of the most powerful villains Spidey ever faced.

If Sony is hoping to set up a Spider-Man cinematic universe, introducing Norman Osborn would be a great way to both set up a scary villain and start bringing the various properties together. He could be the "anti" Nick Fury of the Spider-verse.

7 DEMOGOBLIN

There are a ton of Goblins in Spider-Man's rogues gallery, and the weirdest one has to be Demogoblin. He originally appeared as a demon that bonded to Jason Macendale while he was still using the Hobgoblin persona. Eventually, Macendale separated himself from the demon, which created a separate entity known as the Demogoblin.

The being targeted those it believed to be sinners, but it essentially considered everyone to be a sinner. Shockingly, he teamed up with Carnage during Maximum Carnage, believing that they'd offer him the most opportunity to punish every sinner it could find. Sure, it doesn't make a lot of sense, but that's what makes Demogoblin such an interesting villain.

6 CARNAGE

The most obvious choice for Venom 2's villain is Carnage. While Cletus Kasady made a cameo in Venom (2018), he has yet to appear bonded to his own symbiote. Carnage made several short cameos in the comics, but his first full appearance occurred in The Amazing Spider-Man #361 (1992) by David Michelinie and Mark Bagley.

Kasady was Eddie Brock's cellmate when the symbiote appeared and broke Brock out of prison. It left behind an offspring, which bonded with Kasady. Unlike Eddie, Carnage has no desire to be a hero or do the right thing. He just wants to spread chaos. Venom hates his "son," and whenever the two meet, things get crazy real quick.

5 BLACK CAT

While she's switched sides recently, Black Cat has mostly acted as a hero in the Marvel Universe. The daughter of a cat burglar, Felicia Hardy first appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man #194 (1979) by Marv Wolfman and Keith Pollard. She eventually developed romantic feelings for Spider-Man, and the two had a brief relationship.

This is where Venom comes in. After breaking up, Felicia spent some time away, during which Peter married Mary Jane. When Hardy returned to the city, she went looking for Peter at his old apartment, the same time that Venom came knocking. Felicia not only got defeated by the villain, but this is when she learned about Spidey's marriage as well.

4 FIRESTAR

While she's technically an X-Men character, Firestar debuted in the cartoon Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends (1981). Apparently, the show's creators wanted Spidey to be pals with the Human Torch, but were unable to get the rights to that character. Angelica Jones was introduced as a mutant and former X-Man. The character was popular, and she eventually made her way into the comics.

In fact, she ended up playing a significant role in Maximum Carnage. Due to her heat-based powers, Venom wanted to use her to end Cletus Kasady for good. This began a debate between Eddie and Spidey over what lines heroes should cross, with Angelica stuck right in the middle. Fortunately, she decided to do the right thing.

3 SILVER SABLE

One of the proposed films in Sony's Spider-Verse would supposedly star Black Cat and Silver Sable, too of Spidey's allies. Sable made her first appearance in The Amazing Spider-Man #265 (1985) by Tom Defalco and Ron Frenz. She's a mercenary from the small European country Symkaria, and the leader of a group known as the Wild Pack.

While she and Venom don't really have any significant history together, she'd still make a good addition to the sequel. As previously stated, Sony wants to launch a cinematic universe similar to the MCU, only based on Spidey characters. Having Sable make an appearance in Venom 2 would give her a good launching pad for her own spin-off.

2 NIGHTWATCH

Another hero supposedly up for Sony's film universe is Nightwatch. While he might not be the most well known Spider-Man ally, Nightwatch still has an interesting history. After a few cameo appearances, Nightwatch made his full debut in Web of Spider-Man #99 (1993) by Terry Kavanagh and Derek Yaniger, Alex Saviuk and Joe Rubinstein. Dr. Kevin Trench was shocked when he witnessed a takedown, especially when he discovered that the victim was an older version of himself.

He took the costume that his older self was wearing, and after some reflection, became Nightwatch. He fought alongside the heroes during Maximum Carnage, and would later face off against and even team up with Venom.

1 FLASH THOMPSON

Until a few years ago, the idea of having a Venom movie without Flash Thompson didn't seem like that big of a deal. Now, it's crazy that Thompson isn't a major character. While he originally appeared as a bully in Peter Parker's high school, Thompson grew up to become a good guy and joined the army. After being wounded, he was bonded with the Venom symbiote and became Agent Venom.

Out of all of the other hosts to wear the symbiote, Thompson is probably the most popular. Things might get complicated considering that a version of Flash appeared in the MCU, but there's no reason Sony can't figure out a way to bring him to their Venom films.