Riot escaped containment and caused the shuttle to crash land in Malaysia, but Venom and the other two symbiotes were collected by the Life Foundation and taken to San Francisco, where Carlton Drake experimented on them. Bonded to a homeless woman named Maria, Venom deemed her an incompatible host and consumed her from the inside-out over the course of a week; transferring to investigative reporter Eddie Brock when he broke into the lab. Deeming Eddie a compatible host, Venom helped him escape.