'The Venture Bros.': How Did Jonas Venture Sr Die?

(Note: This post contains spoilers for the Aug. 19 episode of “The Venture Bros.”)

“The Venture Bros.” frequently leverages its extensive backstory to turn seemingly minor details into huge reveals. And pulled off what might be its biggest reveal ever in the Season 7 premiere: Dr. Jonas Venture Sr.’s brain was somehow kept alive for decades after his apparent death, by being attached to a supercomputer.

Jonas Venture Sr. casts a large shadow over everything in the world of “The Venture Bros.” The possibility that he might now return, for real, changes everything. But how did he actually die in the first place?

Until Season 7, Jonas Sr.’s death has only been explored in bits and pieces — in fact, not even his son, Rusty, knew what really happened to him. There have been some hints over the years, but as with just about everything in “The Venture Bros.,” everything we thought we knew was actually just part of the truth. In fact, the show threw a huge misdirection at viewers several seasons ago when it suggested one possible fate for Jonas, but now we know the truth. In bringing back one of the oldest (and most fun) gags in the show, the legend of Movie Night on Gargantua-1, “The Venture Bros.” has finally explained Jonas’ fate.

Also Read: 'The Venture Bros' Just Brought Back One of the Series' Oldest Jokes: 'Phantom Spaceman'

If you’re not up to speed with the vast history of Dr. Jonas Venture Sr., though, here’s a quick primer.

To start, Jonas was a rich, very famous super-scientist and adventurer. During his 1960s-70s heyday, Jonas led Team Venture, a group of heroes that, as far as their publicity machine was concerned, were idealized progress, freedom, family and teamwork personified.

But the truth, as told through flashbacks, turns out to be much murkier. His son, Thaddeus “Rusty” Venture, grew up accompanying Team Venture around the world and was child star adored by millions of kids as an adventurer in his own right. However, Rusty was actually deeply traumatized by the constant danger he experienced. And what’s more, Jonas Sr. was a selfish, indifferent father who compounded Rusty’s trauma with emotional manipulation. Jonas Sr. also often displayed total disregard not only for Rusty’s safety, but the larger consequences of his actions, with disastrous results.

Also Read: 9 of the Best Marvel Comics Jokes in 'The Venture Bros'

Rusty subsequently became a feckless, neurotic adult, deeply resentful of his father and bent on escaping from his shadow. Unfortunately, he was instead forced to permanently live under it when Jonas Sr. died while Rusty was in college, and Rusty had to take over the family’s “super science” business. Rusty never learned the full details of how Jonas died. In fact, at one point he straight up asks the remaining elderly members of Team Venture if they “got him killed,” though nobody really elaborates as to what happened. Turns out, they weren’t responsible or even present at the time.

It’s eventually strongly hinted that Jonas Sr. was killed as part of a centuries-long conspiracy. When he was still alive, Jonas Sr. was protected by his silent bodyguard, Kano. Kano previously worked with a deceased vigilante ally of Jonas called the Blue Morpho (who, by the way, was also “revealed” to be the father of Rusty’s supervillain arch-nemesis, The Mighty Monarch, but…). But Kano is just one in a long line of Venture family bodyguards going back to the 1800s, and in Season 3 and Season 4, we learn that the real thing those bodyguards are protecting is a super-powerful artifact called the Orb.

Nobody quite knows what the Orb does, but apparently the orders for bodyguards assigned to the Venture clan was to kill whoever might use the Orb rather than let it be activated. Including Kano, who eventually tells Rusty’s bodyguard, Brock Sampson, that he took a vow of silence as penance for taking “a great man from the world.” When Brock asks Kano point-blank whether he killed Jonas Venture, Kano refuses to answer, but the audience is left to assume the answer is yes.

Also Read: 'Venture Bros.' Season 7 Finally Brings Back an All-Important Character

Turns out, Kano was just being cagey. At the end of the Season 7 premiere episode, Rusty discovers that Jonas’ severed head is hooked up to a machine called “PROBLEM,” and still has a form of consciousness. He then learns something shocking from the elderly members of the original Team Venture: Jonas had left them orders that upon his death, they must preserve his body in a machine called the “PROBLEM” (PROgressive Biological Life Extension Module) housed on his massive space station, Gargantua-1.

This was news to Rusty, who until that moment didn’t even know that “PROBLEM” was an acronym. Instead, he (like viewers) assumed “PROBLEM,” which features a blinking red light under its name, was just a warning light for the space station’s big computer. He first encountered it way back in Season 1, when it lit up, and the resident astronauts of Gargantua-1 asked for Rusty’s help figuring out what to do about it. Rusty thought he fixed the problem indicated by the light when he found a melted action figure inside one of Gargantua-1’s components. Turns out, that was actually Jonas, only vaguely aware and trying to communicate.

Gargantua-1 later crashed on Earth, but the PROBLEM module survived and was eventually discovered by Jonas “JJ” Venture Jr., Rusty’s twin brother, who salvaged it. JJ apparently didn’t know what the PROBLEM housed, either, and the original Team Venture members never bothered to mention the machine, or its contents, to anyone.

Also Read: 'The Venture Bros' Refresher: Everything We Know About the Blue Morpho

So Jonas Sr.’s head was now at Ventech HQ in New York, and we finally discover how Jonas met his end. In that same episode in Season 1 on Gargantua-1 (titled “Careers in Science”), we hear the story of “Movie Night,” a ghost story astronaut Bud Manstrong tells Rusty’s sons, Hank and Dean, when they visit the space station. Most of the original crew of Gargantua-1, hundreds of people, gathered in the hangar bay to watch a movie together, when someone opened the bay doors to space, killing most everyone.

We found out in the third episode of Season 7, with the cheeky title “Arrears in Science,” what actually happened. After years of backhanded “friendship” (and blackmail) at Jonas Sr.’s hand, the Blue Morpho was killed in an unrelated plane crash, Jonas Sr. turned him into Venturian, a cyborg who basically resembles Robocop. The Morpho recovered some of his memories at some point and, struggling to parse his new existence and his former life, attacked Rusty as a child. Kano snapped Venturian’s neck to save Rusty — and that was the start of his vow of silence, which he said previously was penance for “taking a great man from the world.”

A supervillain, Dr. Z, found Venturian in the Venture compound’s Dumpster and took it back to his lab to repair it and turn it against Dr. Venture, so the Blue Morpho was reborn a second time as the robotic supervillain Vendata. Later, with a group of supervillains, Vendata attacked Gargantua-1 with the plan of taking everyone hostage and “menacing” Jonas Sr. When Vendata confronted Jonas, the super-scientist revealed Vendata’s true identity; when Vendata threatened to vent Movie Night into space, Jonas Sr. responded that he didn’t think his heroic friend would hurt anyone.

Also Read: 'Avengers: Infinity War' -- Here's What Happened Next in the Comic Book Version of the Story

We don’t actually see Vendata open the bay doors: when Vendata, remembering his Blue Morpho identity, returns in Season 7, he refuses to believe he killed all those people. But those doors were opened, and Jonas Sr. was among the people killed when they were sucked out into the vacuum of space. Team Venture managed to rescue his frozen body outside Gargantua-1 and get him (or his head, anyway) into the PROBLEM machine.

It seems pretty clear Vendata/Blue Morpho was responsible for the Movie Night Massacre, but as the third episode of season seven just proved, unless we see it happen, it could go any number of ways. Whatever the truth,after the events of “Arrears in Science,” Jonas Sr. is seemingly dead once again. Rusty turned over his father’s head to the Office of Secret Intelligence for “research,” and the finale of the episode seemed to suggest show creators Jackson Publick and Doc Hammer are making a joke of this apparent obsession with history as much as anything else. Jonas Sr. might return, but right now, it seems like he’s dead again — maybe for good this time.

All 37 Stan Lee Marvel Movie Cameos Ranked (Photos)

For decades, Stan Lee was a staple of Marvel movies, making cameo appearances in most of them until his death in 2018. To celebrate his birthday -- he would have been 98 years old today -- let's look back at every one of his Marvel cameos over the years.
Marvel
37. "Deadpool 2" (2018) -
The bottom of this list consists of Lee's "blink and you'll miss it" cameos. In "Deadpool 2," he doesn't actually appear in the movie in person -- he pops up as a huge wall mural that's a bit tough to spot, and gone almost immediately.
Fox
36. "Spider-Man 2" (2004) -
Another super-quick Lee cameo, but during the first fight between Spidey and Doc Ock, Lee sees enough screen time to pull a women out of harm's way. Watch the clip here.
Sony
35. "Spider-Man" (2002) -
Same here. Lee gets a freeze-frame shot during one of the big fight scenes in the Sam Raimi original. This was before Stan Lee cameos became a major part of the Marvel moviegoing experience, explaining why so little thought was put into them. Watch the clip here.
Sony
34. Iron Man 3 (2013) -
You can catch Lee for a split second as a beauty pageant judge in this film. Compared to some of the other recent Lee cameos, this one is extremely forgettable. Watch the clip here.
Marvel
33. "X-Men: The Last Stand" (2006) -
Lee appears in a flashback scene where Jean Grey demonstrates her powers. Another one of the more forgettable cameos, this one at least gives fans time to register who they're looking at. Watch the clip here.
Fox
32. "X-Men" (2000) -
This was the first Marvel feature film to include Stan Lee, and as such was purely an easter egg for eagle-eyed fans. Lee can be seen for several seconds as a beach-side hot dog vendor, but he's not the focus of the shot as he is in later films. Watch the clip here.
Fox
31. "Daredevil" (2003) -
Here's where the cameos start getting good. Lee gets saved from walking into traffic by a young Matthew Murdock, marking the first time Lee is used as part of a gag in a Marvel film. Watch the clip here.
Fox
30. "Iron Man 2" (2010) -
This is another fleeting clip, but it ranks higher for portraying Lee as Larry King, complete with glasses and suspenders. Watch the clip here.
Marvel
29. "Fantastic Four" (2005) -
The first film in which Lee talks with one of his creations portrays him this time as a mailman who extends Reed Richards a friendly greeting. Beyond that, there's nothing too special about this appearance, but it demonstrates the pivot toward increased focus on these cameos. Watch the clip here.
Fox
28. "Doctor Strange" (2016) -
This quick cameo sees Lee reading Aldus Huxley's "The Doors of Perception" and otherwise remaining completely oblivious to the otherworldly goings-on just outside his bus window. Watch the clip here.
Marvel
27. "X-Men: Apocalypse" (2016) -
Lee appears with his wife, Joan Lee, pop up in "Apocalypse" as a couple watching as the world's nuclear weapons are launched -- although luckily, they're being rendered useless in space. It was Joan's final appearance on film before her death in 2017. Watch the clip here.
Fox
26. "Captain America: The First Avenger" (2011) -
Some films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe use Lee as the punchline for a gag scene. Here, Lee cameos as a military official at a White House press event that Cap no-shows. Watch the clip here.
Marvel
25. "Thor" (2011) -
Here's another gag scene in which Lee uses a truck to try to uproot Thor's hammer, which can only be wielded by someone who's "worthy," from the crater in which it's stuck. Watch the clip here.
Marvel
24. "Captain America: The Winter Soldier" (2014) -
Lee plays a security guard at a museum where Cap's suit is on display. Unfortunately for Stan's job security, Steve Rogers needs it back. Watch the clip here.
Marvel
23. "Spider-Man: Homecoming" (2017) -
Lee returns to New York to join in the neighborhood lecturing the Web-Slinger about a slightly botched attempt at heroism. Watch the clip here.
Sony
22. "Ant-Man" (2015) -
During Luis' madcap story, Lee appears as a bartender. Hearing Michael Pena's voice come out of Lee's mouth is a great surprise gag. Watch the clip here.
Marvel
21. "Iron Man" (2008) -
By the time "Iron Man" was released, Marvel knew its fans were on the lookout for the Stan cameo, so they put him in a smoking jacket, flanked him with some beautiful women and had him appear as Hugh Hefner. Watch the clip here.
Marvel
20. "The Avengers" (2012) -
This is a bit of a cheat. The actual Lee cameo used was another quick shot that would have ranked low on this list, but the deleted cameo is too funny to exclude. As Cap struggles to adjust to life in the 21st century, Lee shows up to call him out on his obliviousness. Watch the clip here.
Marvel
19. "Avengers: Infinity War" (2018) - Lee's back in New York and completely unimpressed by Thanos and his minions in his "Infinity War" cameo. There's a fair chance he's reprising his role from "Spider-Man: Homecoming" in this one. Watch the clip here.
Marvel
18. "Thor: The Dark World" (2013) -
Poor Dr. Selvig. After getting his brain scrambled by the Mind Stone in "The Avengers," he's left in a mental ward where he uses Stan Lee's shoe to deliver a lecture about the convergence theory before an ambivalent audience. Watch the clip here.
Marvel
17. "Guardians of the Galaxy" (2014) -
It's already surreal to see Rocket Raccoon in a blockbuster. It's even weirder to hear him voiced by an A-List actor like Bradley Cooper. But nothing is as weird as seeing Rocket ask Stan Lee from afar, "Where's your wife, you old codger?" Watch the clip here.
Marvel
16. "Deadpool" (2016) -
The raunchiest Marvel film deserves the raunchiest Stan Lee cameo. If you think it's weird to see him guest star as a strip club DJ, remember that this is the guy who created "Stripperella." Watch the clip here.
Fox
15. "Venom" (2018) -
At the very end of the movie, after Eddie has one last heartfelt conversation with Annie, Stan Lee pops up to encourage Eddie in a very knowing way: "Don't give up on her -- either of you."
Sony
14. "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer" (2007) -
In a rare cameo as himself, Stan Lee tries and fails to get into a wedding guarded by a skeptical bouncer. Watch the clip here.
Fox
13. "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" (2014) -
During Gwen and Peter's graduation, Lee spots Peter swapping his Spider-Man costume for a cap and gown. "I think I know that guy," he exclaims. Watch the clip here.
Sony
12. "Black Panther" (2018) -
Lee is often seen as a blue collar guy just trying to make a living in his movie cameos, and in "Black Panther," he seizes an opportunity, disapproving glare of Everett Ross be damned. Watch the clip here.
Marvel
11. "Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018) - Lee is back to being oblivious in his "Ant-Man and the Wasp" cameo, when his car is shrunk by some collateral Ant-Man mayhem right before he can get inside. "Well, the '60s were fun, but now I'm payin' for 'em," Lee remarks, still holding his car keys.
Marvel
10. "Avengers: Endgame" (2019) -

Lee pops up here when Captain America and Iron Man travel back to the past to steal the Tesseract from a SHIELD base in the 1970s. Lee plays an old hippy who yells "Make love, not war" as he drives by the base. Watch the clip here.
Marvel
9. "Captain America: Civil War" (2016) -
The movie's greatest strength is its balance of comedy and drama. At the film's close, Tony and Rhodey have an emotional moment together when Lee arrives to lighten the mood as a mailman looking for "Tony Stank." Watch the clip here.
Marvel
8. "The Incredible Hulk" (2008) -
Quentin Tarantino has been known to subject himself to some gruesome fates in his own films. Here Stan Lee gets a tough break as a poor sucker who accidentally gets gamma radiation poisoning from a contaminated soda. Watch the clip here.
Universal
7. "The Amazing Spider-Man" (2012) -
While the first two "Spider-Man" films saw Lee scrambling to get out of danger, the Andrew Garfield reboot made him completely oblivious to it. Watch the clip here.
Sony
6. "Captain Marvel" (2019) -

Lee can be seen in this film on a bus reading the screenplay for the Kevin Smith movie "Mallrats," which Lee appeared in. It's one of the many nods to '90s pop culture in "Captain Marvel." Watch the clip here.
Marvel
5. "Thor: Ragnarok" (2017) -
Stan Lee follows his post "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2" cosmic cameo and shows up as a barber on the planet Sakaar, looking to cut Thor's hair. Lee says, "And don't you move, my hands aren't as steady as they used to be!" Watch the clip here.
Marvel
4. "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2" (2017) -
Seemingly confirming something Marvel fans have suspected for some time, Stan appears with the Watchers, the group of all-seeing cosmic beings who observe intelligent life in the universe. Fans have figured Lee shows up in every movie because he's a Watcher himself. Watch the clip here.
Marvel
3. "Hulk" (2003) -
This cameo isn't a gag, but it is the best easter egg in any Marvel movie. The fellow security guard to whom Lee is talking is none other than original TV Hulk Lou Ferrigno. Watch the clip here.
Universal
2. "Avengers: Age of Ultron" (2015) -
Stan the Man's cameos may never get funnier than this. As Lee demonstrates, Asgardian ale packs more punch than Thor's hammer. Watch the clip here.
Marvel
1. "Spider-Man 3" (2007) -
Our list began with a "Spider-man" film, so it's fitting that it ends with one. "Spider-man 3" may have polarized Marvel fans, but this Stan Lee cameo in which he smiles at Peter Parker is a heartwarming meeting between a comic book icon and his creator. Watch the clip here.
Sony

1 of 38

On what would have been the comics legend’s 98th birthday, The Wrap looks back at his sometimes forgettable — other times hilarious — onscreen appearances

For decades, Stan Lee was a staple of Marvel movies, making cameo appearances in most of them until his death in 2018. To celebrate his birthday -- he would have been 98 years old today -- let's look back at every one of his Marvel cameos over the years.

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All 37 Stan Lee Marvel Movie Cameos Ranked (Photos)

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