The Falcon And The Winter Soldier: Why is MCU's John Walker unlike the one in the comics?

The debut episode of The Falcon And The Winter Soldier introduced its viewers to the current successor of Chris Evans' Steve Rogers in the Marvel Universe. The premiere episode of the second MCU Disney+ Spinoff series, titled New World Order, unveiled that John Walker is the current holder of the shield and the official Captain America of the U.S Government. The first episode mirrored its comic book counterpart in the sense that in the comics as well, US Agent, the name given to John Walker's superhero avatar, becomes the unofficial successor to CaptainAmerica.

However, eagle-eyed The Falcon And The Winter Soldier viewers quickly noticed that MCU's John Walker (Played by the recently-introduced The Falcon And The Winter Soldier cast member, Wyatt Russel) is following a storyline that is different from the route that the character takes in the comics. Explaining the same, the head writer of the series, Malcolm Spellman, dwelled deep into the reasons as to why Wyatt Russel's Captain America is such a departure from the source material.

Spellman on the distinctions between the MCU and the comic book John Walker:

While talking about the same with the officials at Entertainment Weekly, Spellman said that MCU's Walker had to be different from the US Agent in the source material (A character who spread anti-Captain America propaganda while saying that he stands for Steve Rogers' true ideals) in the sense that the John Walker of the MCU had to be a bit more heroic and righteous. Additionally, while on the topic, he said that him taking up the mantle of the Avenger who has presumably gone rogue, is indicative of the MCU character's growth.

Coming back to the previous point, Spellman said that in order to pick up the vibranium piece of armour which is considered sacred because of the personality who held it last, MCU' Walker could not have possibly been the antagonist-like US Agent from the comics, hence the departure. Spellman concluded the same by saying that he will have to earn the right to hold the shield during the course of the series. He reportedly concluded his conversation with the aforementioned publication by saying that MCU's John Walker is going to have a sizable impact on the entire universe of the film.

About The Falcon And The Winter Soldier:

The Falcon And The Winter Soldier was supposed to be one of the very first MCU Disney+ spinoff shows to be released by the makers, but the production of the same had to be put on halt due to the still on-going coronavirus pandemic. As a result on the same, the Paul Bettany and Elizabeth Olsen-starrer WandaVision officially became the first show that inaugurated MCU's Phase 4. The Falcon And The Winter Soldier, which made its streaming debut on March 19th, stars the likes of Emily VanCamp, Georges St-Pierre, Daniel Brühl, Adepero Oduye, Miki Ishikawa, and Danny Ramirez, amongst others. The premier episode of the same, entitled New World Order, is available for streaming.