Tom Hardy's Action Sci-Fi Thriller That Ended a Franchise Quietly Becomes a Streaming Sensation

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John Dodge is an MTV Writer for CBR who specializes in movies, television, comics, and pop culture. He has a deep knowledge of franchises like Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Marvel, and DC Comics, along with a passion for indie and horror titles. An expert on obscure productions from the ’80s and ’90s, John is known for his encyclopedic recall of cult classics like Beetleborgs.

The final entry in Tom Hardy's Venom film trilogy is making a run for the top of the streaming charts.

Per FlixPatrol, Venom: The Last Dance has officially claimed the number four spot on the list of the top streaming films currently available on HBO Max. Apart from hitting the global top ten on HBO Max, Venom: The Last Dance has claimed a spot on the top ten chart for over a dozen different countries, including Argentina, Venezuela, and the Dominican Republic.

Written and directed by Kelly Marcel, Venom: The Last Dance marked Tom Hardy's third and final turn as Eddie Brock on the silver screen. The film sees Eddie and the Venom symbiote rushed back to their own universe after being temporarily displaced to the primary Marvel Cinematic Universe, only to find themselves on the run from the law as the number one suspect in a brazen murder case.

Over the course of the film, Eddie and Venom uncover both a vast conspiracy to weaponize Symbiotes and the existence of Knull, the progenitor of the Symbiotes, who seeks a way to free himself from his ancient prison. Soon enough, Eddie and Venom go from fighting for their lives to fighting for the very fate of the entire universe.

Alongside Hardy, Venom: The Last Dance stars Chiwetel Ejiofor as General Rex Strickland, Juno Temple as Doctor Theodora "Teddy" Paine, Stephen Graham as former NYPD Detective Patrick Mulligan, Clark Backo as researcher Sadie "Christmas," and Rhys Ifans as alien enthusiast and eccentric hippie, Martin Moon. Venom: The Last Dance also stars the legendary Andy Serkis as none other than Knull himself.

Upon its release in theaters, Venom: The Last Dance was an overwhelming box office success, grossing more than $478.9 million against a $120 million budget. As of the time of writing, the film holds a 79% approval rating via review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes' audience-generated "Popcornmeter," as averaged across more than 5,000 verified user reviews.

Critics weren't nearly so kind to the film, however, with Venom: The Last Dance only holding a 40% "Fresh" rating via Rotten Tomatoes, as averaged across 225 verified critical reviews of the film. Despite the middling critical response, Venom: The Last Dance was still nominated for a handful of major industry awards, including the 2025 Saturn Award for Best Science Fiction Film and the Visual Effects Society Award for Outstanding Effects Simulations in a Photoreal Feature.

Why Venom: The Last Dance Was Always Going to End the Series

Kelly Marcel, who wrote Venom: Let There Be Carnage and co-wrote Venom before stepping in to write and direct Venom: The Last Dance, opened up about what she already knew about Venom: The Last Dance going into production, noting, "We knew it would be three. We knew it was a trilogy, and we knew it would end like this from the beginning."

She continued to say that "I have been on the first two movies and it felt like we knew that this was the third and final one, and knew that this one was going to be both a blast but emotional as well." Marcel added, "I feel like Tom and I, having spent the better part of seven years working on this, really wanted to bring this one home from inception to the finish line. It felt like the right time to step up and the right movie to do it with."

Venom: The Last Dance is currently available for streaming on HBO Max.