Dane Whitman unveils his sword, the Ebony Blade, during a post-credits scene in Eternals, and the mystical weapon has a fascinating connection to Spider-Man. The MCU’s Phase 4 has introduced the classic Avengers member, Dane Whitman, and set him up to become his heroic alter ego, the Black Knight. This coincides with Spider-Man: No Way Home, which teases the possibility of Peter Parker donning the iconic black suit in its mid-credits scene.

In the mainstream Marvel Comics universe, Dane Whitman became the Black Knight, like his heroic ancient ancestor, Sir Percy of Scandia. Whitman’s uncle, Nathan Garrett, used the moniker as well, but as a villainous member of the Masters of Evil. As the Black Knight, Whitman wields the Ebony Blade, an extremely powerful sword with a terrible curse, despite its heroic use.

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The corrupting qualities of the Ebony Blade are not unlike those of Spider-Man’s black suit, and both items share a similar origin. Knull, a malevolent cosmic being, created the goo-like alien beings called the symbiotes, and a particularly famous symbiote, Venom, became one of Spider-Man’s “suits” in his comics and their adaptations. Knull describes the Ebony Blade, which was crafted from a meteorite called the Starstone, as a symbiotic sword. With Spider-Man’s symbiote suit now a possibility due to No Way Home’s ending, Peter Parker and Dane Whitman may go through a similar arc and perhaps help each other overcome their symbiotic corruption.

No Way Home perfectly set up the necessary conditions for an MCU symbiote suit storyline. As shown in the mid-credits scene, the Sony universe’s Eddie Brock went back to his home reality but left a portion of the Venom symbiote behind, where it will likely make its way to New York City. Spider-Man is more alone than ever before, as the world has forgotten about not only his secret identity but their memories of Peter Parker as well. This makes Spider-Man particularly vulnerable to the corrupting power boost of the Venom symbiote.

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Spider-Man’s symbiote suit and the Black Knight’s Ebony Blade both imbue their users with incredible powers, granting Whitman immortality and Parker with a significant boost to his existing abilities. The sword and the suit both thrive on their user’s aggression and negative emotions, however, fueling them in turn and corrupting their respective heroes. With this in mind, Spider-Man and the Black Knight could be invaluable allies in resisting and rejecting their respective symbiote’s corruption.

While Dane Whitman is teased to become the MCU’s Black Knight in Eternals, it’s unknown when he’ll return to the franchise, let alone take on his heroic title. Spider-Man, on the other hand, will star in a new trilogy of solo films, and with the Venom symbiote tease in No Way Home, he may wear his black symbiote suit in these upcoming films. With similar issues regarding symbiotes and their corrupting influence, Dane Whitman’s Black Knight story that began in Eternals should continue in a future Spider-Man film, with the two assisting each other in resisting the influence of their respective symbiotes.

Key Release Dates
  • Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)Release date: May 06, 2022
  • Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)Release date: Jul 08, 2022
  • Black Panther: Wakanda Forever/Black Panther 2 (2022)Release date: Nov 11, 2022
  • The Marvels/Captain Marvel 2 (2023)Release date: Feb 17, 2023
  • Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023)Release date: May 05, 2023
  • Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023)Release date: Jul 28, 2023
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David Miller
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David Miller is a staff writer for Screen Rant, indie comic writer, and life-long lover of all things Star Wars, Marvel, and DC. He was born and raised in New York and has a degree in English from Rider University. He relates to Peter Parker maybe a little too much.

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