Hal Jordan Is No Longer Green Lantern In The DC Movie Universe
Hal Jordan is out and this Green Lantern is in.
Green Lantern was an embarrassing big-screen debut for the storied DC Comics superhero. The Ryan Reynolds film was roundly derided by critics and audiences did not seem enthused by it either. Reynolds has even outright criticized or lampooned the movie multiple times throughout his career. It does not sound like anyone is going to defend that movie.
That probably has something to do with this latest bit of Green Lantern news. According to this rumor, the character played by Ryan Reynolds, Hal Jordan, will not be appearing in the DC cinematic outings. Instead, the role of Green Lantern will be filled by John Stewart, a different character who has worn the mantle in various comic books and animated adaptations.
This could all get a bit confusing, so here’s a quick recap: Hal Jordan and John Stewart have both been part of the Green Lantern Corps, an intergalactic police organization that protects the entirety of the cosmos. there are hundreds of different members in the Green Lantern Corps, including a diverse lineup of aliens from all walks of life.
What makes this announcement a complicated matter is what DC has in store for the Green Lantern universe. Strap in because this is going to get twisty. We already know that there will be a Green Lantern show on HBO Max and that will be led by the Hal Jordan character. That series is being produced by Greg Berlanti, who has produced the Arrowverse lineup of DC shows and other DC outings like Doom Patrol. In the Arrowverse shows, John Stewart is a character played by actor David Ramsey. At this point, it is unclear if the HBO Max series will link up with the Arrowverse shows.
So, could we get two John Stewarts? One in the HBO Max series and one in the DC feature films? It is assumed that the feature film version of Green Lantern will be part of the established DC cinematic universe, so could there be a John Stewart in the movies and a different John Stewart on the HBO Max series? Or could there be a brand new John Stewart in the HBO Max series? Or could John Stewart not even be a character in the HBO Max series?
It’s obvious that the DC movie universe is still trying to figure itself out, but it is likely that these projects are going to be explained away using the multiverse concept that we have seen in both comic books and the recent Arrowverse shows. If that is the case, could the movie version of John Stewart actually end up in other DC projects that take place in different universes? No one knows right now but it is all very exciting for longtime comic book fans.
There is no announcement as to when the Green Lantern movie will be headed our way, but it sounds like it will be headlined by John Stewart. If he can prove to be the Green Lantern of an entire generation – which he already was thanks to the 2001’s Justice League animated series – we could see a brand new life for the character on the big screen.
