DC recently uploaded a video in which James Gunn, acclaimed director and new lead of the DC franchise, outlined numerous different upcoming TV and movie projects that will form part of his new DCU, and one of these was an HBO show that will introduce the Green Lantern character into the universe.
The show will be called Lanterns and will feature two well-known Green Lanterns from the comic books, Hal Jordan and John Stewart. Gunn describes the show by calling these two “space cops,” who are essentially watching over “precinct Earth.” Though there apparently will be “a few other Lanterns peppered in there,” Gunn confirms that the story’s focus will remain terrestrial. He even goes as far as to say that the show’s premise is “almost like True Detective,” the highly acclaimed HBO crime drama.
Gunn further explains that the Lanterns discover a “terrifying mystery,” which will tie into the large DCU story. He unfortunately didn’t provide any release timeframe, however, as relayed by Screen Rant, he stated in a later press event that they were already “talking to actors for the show.” In the video above, Gunn speaks on Lanterns right after discussing the DCU’s first Superman movie, titled Superman: Legacy, which he confirmed will release on July 11, 2025.
This might mean that Lanterns will come out afterward, but this is purely baseless conjecture. What’s more concrete is what this means for other Green Lantern projects that were supposedly in the works. As Screen Rant explains, Greg Berlanti, the creator of the Arrow TV show that spawned the DC Arrowverse, was hired in 2019 to create a Green Lantern series for 10 episodes. Following some delays, it was later slated to be rebooted in 2022, but now, it seems like it won’t be happening at all.
James Gunn affirmed that only some DC projects will be allowed to exist outside the DCU, and these will be labeled ‘DC Elseworlds’ projects. He reportedly also stated that there will be “an incredibly high bar” for these to even exist. Some already greenlit projects include the trilogy of 2022’s The Batman, and the sequel to 2019’s Joker. Given that the Green Lantern show hadn’t even begun, it’s unlikely to be allowed to run alongside the DCU show.