DC Studios co-head James Gunn may be one of the busiest guys in the business. Not only is he overseeing the studio arm of DC Comics for Warner Bros. Discovery, but he’s also exec producing most of the releases, and/or writing and directing them. His take on “Superman” hits theaters later this year, and beyond that, more seasons of “Peacemaker” and assumedly, “Creature Commandos.”
But one of the projects very much as a FINALLY feel to it- a live action series about one of the founding members of the JLA, Green Lantern. The project “Lanterns” was confirmed in June of 2024, and various bits of casting news have been rolling out ever since.
Today’s news comes from Gunn, and confirms that cameras are rolling on the series.
“Excited that ‘Lanterns‘ is now in production,” Gunn shared on social media. “DC Studios’ new show for HBO and Max, from creators Chris Mundy, Damon Lindelof, and Tom King, starring Kyle Chandler and Aaron Pierre, is something really special.”
“I was drawn by the challenge and fun of creating something really grounded inside this big, amazing mythology,” Mundy told Vanity Fair. “From the beginning, all we talked about was, how can we take all the things we loved about the source material and turn it into a layered, human HBO drama? Just the idea of trying to pull that off was exciting to me.”
The series will center on Green Lantern John Stewart (Pierre). Chandler plays Hal Jordan. Ulrich Thomsen will play Sinestro. Kelly Macdonald (“Boardwalk Empire,” “Star Wars: Skeleton Crew“) will play Sheriff Kerry, with Garret Dillahunt as cowboy William Macon, and Poorna Jagannathan as Zoe.
“Our Lanterns have the rings and all the power they bring, and other characters and aspects of the lore are going to show up or be name-checked. But it’s a series that explores who these guys are when they’re on the job and when they’re out of uniform,” Mundy continued. “It’s designed to be accessible for people who don’t know the mythology, but hopefully really satisfying for people that know it backwards and forwards.”
What about where “Lanterns” fits in the greater scheme of everything on the DC Studios docket? “We’re not part of a larger storytelling plan right now,” Mundy said. “Season one is designed to be its own, complete season of television that, hopefully, will become many seasons of television.”
There is no expected release date yet, but we’ll let you know what we hear about this and other news.
