Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’s Adam Warlock hasn’t debuted yet, yet major four differences to the comic character have already been revealed. Played by Will Poulter, the MCU’s take on the Golden Gladiator from Marvel Comics is about to make his long-awaited live-action debut. Directly set up in the second installment in the trilogy, Warlock will make his first full appearance during the Guardians’ encounter with the High Evolutionary.
As a leading figure in numerous cosmic crossovers, Adam Warlock will make for a massive addition to the MCU. With his rich history in the comics, his introduction will lend Marvel a great deal of storytelling potential it can exploit for years to come. Of course, exactly what role he’ll be playing will largely be determined by how Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 approaches his character. Since the movie hasn’t been released, so much about Poulter’s portrayal of him remains open to speculation. However, not everything pertaining to the MCU’s Adam Warlock is a secret. In fact, it’s become apparent that he’ll differ from his comic counterpart in at least four ways.
4 Adam Warlock's MCU Origin Is Different To Marvel Comics
Regardless of what happens in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, his origin won’t be the same as the one offered by the comics. That’s because the MCU already explored his creation, courtesy of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. It was revealed in one of the movie’s post-credits scenes that the golden-skinned aliens known as the Sovereigns – led by Ayesha – created Adam Warlock, who was meant to be the best of their species and their weapon against the Guardians. It’s true that Warlock is a genetically-engineered being, but this interpretation differs drastically from the source material.
The comic book version of Adam Warlock was indeed born in a cocoon, but he’s not a member of a race called the Sovereigns, who exist as an invention of the MCU. Originally, Warlock was one of a kind, with Ayesha ing the Marvel Universe later. As for where Warlock came from, he was actually made by human scientists in a 1960s Fantastic Four comic, as opposed to aliens who look like him. A villainous group known as the Enclave envisioned him as the perfect human but soon discovered that he couldn’t be controlled.
3 Adam Warlock's MCU Costume Is Different To Marvel Comics
Another change to Adam Warlock relates to his design. He still has the gold skin and hair, but gone are his white, pupilless eyes, which have been replaced with eyes that look a bit more human. Plus, the costume itself has been significantly reworked as well. The original character sported a sleeveless look, complete with a yellow thunderbolt on the chest. He later added a red cloak with a skull-shaped clasp, which became a consistent part of his design. For the MCU, Marvel changed the cloak into a cape, but kept the skull clasp. The thunderbolt, though, has been dropped completely.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 also adjusted his color scheme by darkening the red to crimson and removing the yellow altogether. Additionally, his costume is now made out of armor, whereas the comic hero wore a spandex suit. Now, the dominant color in his suit is gold, rather than red. One aspect of his look Marvel has elected to keep is the gem in the center of his forehead.
2 Adam Warlock's Powers Will Be Different (Because There's No Soul Stone)
Marvel’s decision to keep the gem is surprising, especially when considering the fact that it can’t be the one he has in his head in the comics. In the Marvel Universe, the gem in his forehead is none other than the Soul Stone. Since the MCU’s Soul Stone was destroyed by Thanos, Warlock will have to go without it, no matter how important it is to his powerset.
In Marvel Comics, Warlock would unintentionally suck an opponent’s soul into the Soul Stone, saving himself from harm and increasing his own power at the same time. This vampiric element of the Soul Stone was a side of it Warlock soon grew to hate, but he couldn’t deny the weapon’s usefulness in battle. With it in his possession, he could augment his own physical strength and emit powerful blasts of cosmic energy from the Soul Stone itself.
The Soul Stone also housed a mysterious paradise dimension known as Soulworld. For a while, Warlock was oblivious to its existence. It wasn’t until he went there himself that he realized that the people he had killed with the Soul Stone were living within it, having forsaken their old lives. The concept of Soulworld played an integral role in Warlock’s journey, but unfortunately for the MCU character, this dimension has already been adapted, albeit loosely, via Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.
1 Adam Warlock's Biggest Comics Story Can't Happen In The MCU
It won’t be feasible for the trajectory of Adam Warlock’s storyline to match that of the comic character. Over the course of his comic adventures, Warlock discovered through his connection to the Soul Stone that it was just one out of a set of six. This served as early setup for his arc in Infinity Gauntlet, the comic crossover that saw him fight Thanos, who had used the six Infinity Stones to erase half of all life in the universe. This proved to be the culmination of his story in the comics, but there’s no way for it to happen without Thanos and without the Soul Stone.
Because of the last two Avengers movies, Adam Warlock’s biggest story has already been taken off the table ahead of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Warlock has had many memorable arcs, but none top Infinity Gauntlet, which involved the hero rising from the dead to lead the heroes of the Marvel Universe in a desperate fight against Thanos. Years after dying and finding a happy ending in Soulworld, Warlock returned and rallied the heroes to stop Thanos and reverse the snap. His victory over Thanos was ultimately what cemented his status as Marvel’s most important cosmic hero, but an MCU version of the battle became an impossibility when Thanos launched his plan before Warlock could even be introduced.
