James Hawes opens up about the DCU Lanterns series, where he will be directing the first two episodes and is executive producer on the show.
Hawes says the Green Lantern series is as grounded and gritty as a “buddy cop” drama but comes with humor. While there have been comparisons to True Detective, Hawes adds the tone is also similar to Fargo and even No Country for Old Men.
Lanterns feels rooted
In an interview with THR about his new movie, The Amateur starring Oscar winning actor Rami Malek and James Gunn’s Superman Lois Lane actress, Rachel Brosnahan, Hawes describes the tone of Lanterns:
Talking tone, it looks and feels rooted. You meet two guys, but there is wit and comedy to it that you would not expect in True Detective. It is, in many ways, a buddy cop structure with travel in the story time, to and fro, that is really sophisticated. Chris Mundy has done the most amazing job with the team there, and so I think [the True Detective comparison] is valid. People will still go, “What were you talking about?” to some extent, but I would also bring in No Country for Old Men, Fargo and things that have that Americana heart to them. There’s a wry humor, and so there definitely is more wit and humor than there is in True Detective.
On the casting of Aaron Pierre as John Stewart
Lanterns stars Kyle Chandler as Hal Jordan, with Aaron Pierre as John Stewart. Nathan Fillion will also be appearing from Superman as Guy Gardner. Ulrich Thomsen is playing Sinestro. Pierre recently appeared in Rebel Ridge, and Hawes was asked if that performance helped secure him the role of John Stewart:
I honestly think he did it totally individually in the room. With some chemistry castings and the like, it just felt like he would inhabit the role. He has such a magnificent presence. He feels so forceful, so cool, so understated. Again, I wanted this world to be rooted, and while there’s only so far you can go with rooting characters in a show about Green Lantern, they are. This is a world where we accept that the Green Lanterns exist and aliens exist. So the rest of it is played straight and in the world as we know it.
Release info
Lanterns doesn’t have a release date but is expected to premiere in early 2026.
The series will consist of eight episodes, with Chris Mundy serving as the showrunner. Damon Lindelof and Tom King are co-writing and executive producing.
Kelly Macdonald is also playing Sheriff Kerry, said to be the love interest of Chandler’s Hal Jordan. Garret Dillahunt is playing William Macon, a modern day cowboy, the series’ potential villain. Jason Ritter is playing his son, Billy Macon. Poorna Jagannathan is playing Zoe, a possible love interest of John Stewart.
