The appearance of John Walker on the new Marvel show The Falcon And The Winter Solider has made waves for fans. Walker has become a pretty divisive character not only in the plot of the show but among viewers as well. Many fans share the sentiments that someone with the insecure vanity of Walker should’ve never taken up the shield.
Others may have felt he was justified in the killing of a Flag Smasher after Lamar’s death, seeking revenge for a fallen friend. Strong feelings about the character who replaced Steve Rogers have spawned many theories about him. While fan theories can be bizarre and over the top, there are actually some that make total sense.
10 John Walker May Become Super Patriot
After killing a member of the Flag Smashers in retaliation for Lamar’s death, John Walker is stripped of the title of Captain America. What’s known as of now is that Walker still possess the super soldier abilities and that Walker had been creating his own shield.
The idea that he’ll become Super Patriot makes sense since Walker was brought to the comic world as Super Patriot by Mark Gruenwald and Paul Neary in Captain America #323. Going off of the comics and seeing Walker continuing his mission despite the fact that he can’t do it as Captain America, it’s pretty believable that he’ll adopt the Super Patriot moniker in the series.
9 John Walker May Face Off Against Patriot
While the direction of John Walker is looking grim, the appearance of Young Avengers’ Patriot is promising. Fans believe that we may see Elijah Bradley, played by New Amsterdam’s Elijah Richardson, become the Patriot in the series as we’ve been introduced to his grandfather, Isiah Bradley.
Isiah was a super soldier during the World War II era. In the comics, Patriot’s grandfather transferred over the super soldier powers to Elijah through a blood transfusion. If Patriot appears, it’s believable we’ll see a showdown in the fight against Walker if Walker becomes the villain most people expect he’ll be.
8 Falcon Won’t Become Captain America, Leaving Walker To Be The Only One In The Series
Many fans reject the idea that Sam Wilson will not become Captain America. After all he was Steve Rogers’ choice. But after Sam met with Isiah Bradley, an African-American super soldier who endured horrible experiments and mistreatment by the United States Government, Sam feels conflicted about taking up the shield.
For Sam, being Captain America is complicated as he’s seen what America has done to black super soldiers. This reluctance due to past transgressions may stop Sam from taking up the shield, leaving Walker to be the only Captain America to appear in the series by default.
7 John Walker & Lemar Hoskins May Have A Deeper Relationship
Captain America and Lemar Hoskins were the other dynamic duo in TFATWS. Walker and Lemar (Battlestar) not only watch each other’s backs but they lean on each other for moral support as well. Upon a few other viewings, it’s very believable to assume that Walker’s feelings for Lemar go beyond friendship.
Lemar’s death triggered a blind rage that turned into a public execution and Walker personally delivered the news to Lemar’s family of his passing. Marvel has been rumored to debut more LGBTQ characters in the MCU, with Bucky’s possible bisexuality causing much speculation. It’s fair to speculate that Walker may have unrequited love for Lemar.
6 John Walker Will Team Up With Contessa Valentina Allegra De Fontaine
Viewers are treated to a stunning introduction of Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, played by Julia Louis-Dreyfus. After a high ranking military council decides that Walker isn’t fit to be Captain America, Val approaches Walker at one of his lowest moments to make him an offer Walker can’t refuse.
Val makes it clear that she sympathizes with Walker and states that when she calls him, it’d be wise to answer. In the comics, Val is part of nefarious organizations such as Hydra and the Leviathan, even becoming the second Madam Hydra. Since Hydra is seemingly no more in the MCU, it’s not quite clear what she has planned for Walker, but it’s a safe bet he’ll be involved with her given his limited options.
5 John Walker May Face Off Against Mutants
There’s been a lot of rumors regarding X-Men and mutants appearing in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier. There’s been a lot of speculation on how this would be introduced, but many believe this is the series where mutants will finally join the MCU (see the introduction of Madripoor).
One of the most interesting theories is that there are Flag Smashers who are mutants rather than super soldiers. Since John Walker has it out for the Flag Smashers, it’s not out of the realm of possibility to have a mutant reveal themselves during an inevitable conflict between Walker and the Flag Smashers.
4 Bucky & Walker Team Up To Defeat The Flag Smashers
Bucky and John Walker becoming a team was once considered one of the best fan theories. Despite all that’s happened with Walker being ousted as Captain, it’s still pretty believable. Right now, Walker needs all the help he can get.
Both Bucky and Walker want to defeat the Flag Smashers, but Bucky has been resisting the violent impulses that Walker gave into. The problem with Bucky is he still has past memories and recurring nightmares about his crimes as the Winter Soldier. It’s very possible that Bucky will backslide and give into mortally wounding his opponents at the urging of Walker. If Bucky resists therapy and allows his old self to resurface, it’s possible these two can form a deadly combination.
3 Falcon & Bucky Will Fight John Walker, Sharing The Responsibility Of Captain America’s Legacy
Fans have theorized about the possibility of these two teaming up as a duo, forming Team Captain America. While they start out as bitter rivals in the show, they share an even more profound distrust for John Walker as Captain America, refusing to even work with him.
Bucky and Sam have fought Walker post-serum and they’ll do it again if they have too. The two have grown to admire each other and they still do not want Walker to tarnish Steve Roger’s legacy any more than he already has.
2 Flag Smashers Will Team Up With Falcon to Defeat John Walker
It seems inevitable that Falcon and the international terrorist group known as the Flag Smashers will have to team up to fight John Walker. Walker now has a personal vendetta against the Flag Smashers and Sam already has developed a relationship with Karli Morgenthau to try and convince her to disband the group.
Sam actually agrees with a lot of the points that the Flag Smashers made but disapproves of their violent methods. Falcon and Walker were never on great terms which were made even worse after the fight over the Captain America shield. Falcon/Flag Smashers versus John Walker is almost bound to happen.
1 John Walker Will Be The Most Treacherous Enemy In The Series
One of the most ominous moments of foreshadowing happens after Zemo breaks the super soldier vials, and Walker secretly keeps one for himself. After Lamar is killed in a fight with Karli, John’s true colors come out in the heat of passion. Chasing down and killing a Flag Smasher in front of a crowd of people was one of the most gruesome parts of the series.
This killing caused Sam and Bucky to confront Walker and take the shield. The US government also discharged his status as Captain America. While redemption isn’t impossible, it’s clear that John isn’t going down a great path and the death of Lamar and fall from grace is all too perfect of a set-up for a villain origin story. It should be noted that John Walker also gets very dark in the comics as well.
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