Through Superman: Legacy, the new DC Universe will deliver on a big character tease that never saw a pay-off in 12 years of DCEU films.
Through Superman: Legacy, the new DCU will pay off on the potential of the Green Lanterns 12 years after their last cinematic appearance. There were multiple teases of the Green Lantern legacy in the DCEU and several attempts to bring them into play. Sadly, none of them paid out, but DC Studios co-CEO and Superman: Legacy director James Gunn has made it clear that utilizing the Green Lantern Corps is a top priority for the new DC Universe.
The Green Lanterns have not had the best luck in being adapted to live-action. The 2011 Green Lantern movie, which had been hoped to be the start of a new DC Cinematic Universe to match the one Marvel Studios established with Iron Man, failed to meet expectations financially or critically. The Arrowverse fared somewhat better, teasing that John Diggle would become Green Lantern in the Arrow series finale before ultimately retconning the storyline in The Flash season 8. Yet nothing quite so failed the Green Lantern Corps concept so badly as their treatment in the DCEU.
Green Lantern Was Teased In The DCEU From The Beginning
Director Zack Snyder teased the existence of the Green Lanterns in his DCEU from the beginning. While Man of Steel did not feature any direct references to the alien peacekeepers, the movie did feature a USAF Major named Carrie Ferris. Her name and her appearance mirrored that of Carol Ferris, a pilot who was the chief love interest of Green Lantern Hal Jordan in the comics. The implication seemed to be that Hal Jordan was among the fighter pilots defending Metropolis during General Zod’s invasion and might soon be appearing as Green Lantern. However, this is the only official Green Lantern reference in the DCEU canon.
Snyder referenced the Green Lanterns more directly in his cut of the Justice League movie. The Green Lantern Yalan Gur fought alongside the Amazons, Atlanetans, and Olympian Gods, defending Earth from Uxas and the warriors of Apokolips in the History Lesson flashback sequence. Later in the film, when Cyborg had a vision of the Knightmare timeline future, he saw an unfamiliar figure in the uniform of a Green Lantern among the fallen in the ruins of the Hall of Justice. Fans of the Green Lantern Corps comics immediately recognized this fallen Green Lantern as Kilowog, a senior Lantern charged with training new recruits.
Snyder intended to go one step further and had plans to introduce the Green Lantern John Stewart in Zack Snyder’s Justice League as well. He cast actor Wayne T. Carr as John Stewart and shot a scene intended to go at the end of the movie where Stewart introduced himself to Bruce Wayne and offered his help in fighting Darkseid’s forces. However, Snyder was told he couldn’t use John Stewart due to other plans for the character, and the scene was altered to replace John Stewart with Martian Manhunter.
These plans were probably tied to the development of a Green Lantern Corps series for HBO Max. Produced by Arrowverse architect Greg Berlanti, the show bounced between being set in the same universe as Arrow and The Flash and being set in the DCEU. The show also changed leads several times in development, at one point being a vehicle for John Stewart and featuring the Green Lanterns Guy Gardner and Alan Scott. Berlanti stepped away from the show in early 2023, and the series is now apparently being retooled or replaced into the Max series Lanterns, which will center around John Stewart and Hal Jordan.
James Gunn’s DC Universe Is Going All-In On Green Lanterns
While it is unclear just how much of Berlanti’s design might make it into Lanterns, it is clear that James Gunn has no intention of teasing or slowly introducing the long-maligned Lanterns into the new DCU. From Gunn’s first announcement regarding the plans for the DC Universe’s “Chapter One: Gods and Monsters,” it was clear that the Green Lantern Corps would have a major role in the setting. While little has been established about Lanterns so far, it has been described as a mystery in the same vein as True Detective and ties into the larger story connecting all the DCU shows and movies together.
The biggest sign that James Gunn has big plans for the Green Lantern Corps came in a casting announcement for the first DCU film. Gunn confirmed that Nathan Fillion would be playing the role of Green Lantern Guy Gardner in Superman: Legacy. This bold choice will shine a light on the Green Lanterns in the new DC Universe in a big way long before the premiere of Lanterns.
