Wyatt Russell on John Walker’s MCU Future After The Falcon and the Winter Soldier

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier introduced John Walker, the new Captain America, to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Played by Wyatt Russell, Walker was eager to hoist Cap’s shield. By episode three, he’s already starting to show signs of cracking under the pressure as the Flag-Smashers continues to evade him and Sam and Bucky remain one step ahead in the investigation. Fans know that some of the Marvel Studios series on Disney+ set up future films, even introducing new characters for upcoming movies. Could John Walker be one such character? Entertainment Tonight put that question to Russell in a recent interview (included below).

“You got to call Kevin [Feige],” Russell said. “I don’t know. That’s something that Marvel — you’re not involved at all. That’s just something that, later on, becomes apparent or it doesn’t. And it has a lot to do with what fans think, I think, and how they feel about you, where they want to see things go, and that’s so far out of my control that I just try to do a good job and hopefully this one is good it’s good enough for them to make more. But it’s above my paygrade.”

John Walker’s Marvel Comics origin set him up as the dark Captain America, representing a version of American patriotism that Steve Rogers would disapprove. Walker was destined for failure as Rogers returned to claim that shield. During the ET interview, Wyatt explains that, while his character might be trying to follow Captain America’s footsteps, he isn’t trying to imitate Chris Evans’s performance as Steve Rogers.

“The Marvel understanding was, ‘Look, this is obviously not trying to do what Chris Evans did.’ ‘Okay, great,’” Russell said. “And you kind of do your own thing and I think that’s something that is fun for people to put on it. It’s really exciting for people to put onto the character. ‘Well, you’re not that guy!’ That’s kind of the point. It’s kind of what you’re playing. It’s fun to be the Marvel punching bag for a minute.”

While Steve Rogers won’t be back to claim the shield in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, fans expect Sam Wilson to take up the shield by the series’ end. What’s next for John Walker remains unknown.

In the comics, Walker’s story continues when he takes up the title U.S. Agent and tries to break free of Cap’s shadow and redeem himself. As U.S. Agent, Walker goes on to join the Avengers and the Thunderbolts, and the latter of those two teams may be poised to make its Marvel Cinematic Universe debut.

Watch The Falcon and the Winter Soldier on Disney+.

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