Donny Cates

Donny Cates, born September 14, 1984, is an American comic book writer and artist who built one of the more remarkable runs in mainstream superhero comics during the 2010s and early 2020s. After establishing himself through creator-owned work — most notably the Southern Gothic vampire series *Redneck* — he moved into Marvel's heavier hitters with notable stints on *Doctor Strange*, *Thanos*, and *Guardians of the Galaxy*.

It was his extended, mythology-expanding run on *Venom* that cemented his reputation, weaving new cosmological lore around the symbiote that reshaped how the character was understood across Marvel continuity. That work fed directly into *King in Black*, his large-scale crossover event centered on the god-symbiote Knull. He later took on *Thor* with comparable ambition, constructing long-form narratives that leaned into cosmic horror and escalating consequence.

Across roughly a decade of credited work — spanning 2013 to 2023 and more than 150 issues — Cates developed a recognizable voice: propulsive pacing, a fondness for recontextualizing existing mythology, and an appetite for genuinely high stakes. He has also been active as a podcaster. His creator-owned projects demonstrate that his most personal instincts thrive outside corporate IP, even as his Marvel output earned him a wide and devoted readership.