Why Venom Needs To Eat Chocolate Or Brains - Screen Rant

Warning: Spoilers for Venom: Let There Be Carnage

In Venom: Let There Be Carnage, Venom has a particular desire for chocolate and brains, and there's a reason behind it. At the end of 2018's Venom, Tom Hardy's Eddie Brock makes a deal with Venom, the symbiote living in his body. Venom, who has an insatiable appetite for people, isn't allowed to eat just anyone. Eddie informs him that he can stick around if he keeps his cravings to only "very, very bad people." Venom agrees, and Eddie goes off to get the creature some chocolate and tater tots to assuage his hunger. Fortunately for Venom, a mugger starts to mess with Mrs. Chen (a store owner played by Peggy Lu), and he gets to have a snack earlier than expected.

Venom 2 brings back several returning characters and introduces some iconic newcomers. In addition to Hardy and Lu, Michelle Williams reprises her Venom character, Anne Weying, and brings back She-Venom for a memorable appearance. Woody Harrelson, who previously appeared as Cletus Kasady in a Venom post-credit scene, also returns, taking on the role of the main antagonist in the film. Among the newcomers, Naomie Harris joins the cast, giving her interpretation of Frances Barrison/Shriek, a nefarious Marvel character and Kasady's love.

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Eddie Brock's symbiote needs chocolate and brains for an important reason. Sony previously showed the symbiote's love of chocolate and brains at the end of the first film, with Eddie trying to suppress Venom's hunger for humans with the sugary substance. However, Venom ends up biting off a mugger's head anyway. The trailer for Venom 2 also showcased Venom's love of chocolate. "The chocolate delivery hasn't arrived yet," Mrs. Chen tells Eddie/Venom in the Let There Be Carnage trailer. "I am happy to eat Mrs. Chen," Venom replies, which draws Eddie's disapproval and leaves Mrs. Chen alarmed. The answer to why Venom wants these two particular forms of sustenance lies in the character's comic book history.

Venom requires brains and chocolate to survive. Marvel's comics explain that Venom has a biological need for the two substances. In the comics, brains and chocolate are prime sources for phenethylamine, a compound that positively affects mood and that Venom needs to live. Since Venom obviously can't produce the amount he needs independently, he seeks it out through other means. Brains are a perfect source, and chocolate is a more socially acceptable one. The end of Venom, which showed Venom craving chocolate before biting a villain's head off, was a nod to this comic book quirk.

The chocolate and brains are one of the ways Venom 2 connects to the comics. Eddie Brock and Venom are utterly different in the Sony movies and the Marvel comics. For instance, the films largely ignore Venom's connection to Spider-Man until a brief post-credit scene in Venom 2. However, despite the differences, the movies tend to stick to the rules of the comics. For instance, one of Venom's weaknesses is sound. So chocolate and brains are another way Venom: Let There Be Carnage stays true to its Marvel inspiration.

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