Today we got our first look at Tom Hardy as Eddie Brock in Venom, the upcoming Spider-Man spinoff film featuring the titular Marvel anit-hero. As always, the seemingly simple comic book movie photo contained more than initially meets the eye. In this particular case, it may even reveal a major clue about Venom's story and villains.

In the first-look photo, Hardy's Eddie Brock is seen holding a notebook - one that presumably is used for his work as a reporter. Upon examining the photo closely, we deciphered one distinct name written in Brock's notes: The Life Foundation!

For those not in the know: The Life Foundation is a survivalist group in the Marvel Universe that has plagued Spider-Man on more than one occasion. However, the group's moment came in the Venom: Lethal Protector miniseries of the nineties, when Life Foundation Board of Directors member Roland Treece kidnapped Venom and experimented on him, extracting five symbiote "children" from Venom's DNA. Those five symbiotes were bonded to five Life Foundation soldiers, becoming the symbiote villain team of Scream, Phage, Riot, Lasher, and Agony. Lethal Protector's finale saw Venom and Spider-Man team up to defeat the Life Foundation symbiotes.

If the Life Foundation is mentioned in Eddie Brock's investigative notes, then it's easy to presume that the Venom movie could be borrowing from the "Lethal Protector" storyline, and might definitely offer viewers a final act that sees Venom having to face off against darker versions of his symbiote.

Depending on whether or not Venom's symbiote nemesis Carnage appears in the film or not, The Life Foundation could re-fitted to serve as the Carnage symbiote's origin - either by introducing the villain as one of the Life Foundation's new symbiotes, or saving that reveal for the inevitable post-credits teaser, as we learn that the worst of the Venom symbiote offspring is still out there.

How would you like to see the Life Foundation play a part in Venom? A direct "Lethal Protector" adaptation, or set up for a later big event in the franchise?

Venom is scheduled for release on October 5, 2018.