Now that we have a Superman (Henry Cavill), a Batman (Ben Affleck), a Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot), a Flash (Ezra Miller), an Aquaman (Jason Momoa) and a Cyborg (Ray Fisher), our Justice League movie line-up is almost complete. But we still need a Green Lantern. While casting for the role has been pretty quiet — and we’re not even sure, which iteration of the Lantern we’ll be getting — Transformers and Fast and Furious star Tyrese Gibson has been campaigning hard for the part. And he’s been riling up fans with some pretty badass fan art.
Taking to Instagram to whip the fans into shape, as celebrities do, Gibson has been posting fan-made images of himself all suited up as the DC hero. But now he writes that he’s "determined" to get the part. Ryan Reynolds famously (and horrendously) portrayed test pilot-turned-Lantern Hal Jordan in the 2011 Green Lantern movie. But here we see fans cropping Gibson next to images of John Stewart, a U.S. marine vet who is also granted one of the alien rings of willpower. Aside from the character’s debut in the comics, he’s also been a mainstay in the Justice League animated series, while Jordan has found a home in the Justice League animated movies. (The latest installment is the Throne of Atlantis.)
As Gibson wrote on Instagram, "Why don't we have more black superheroes"? Frankly, DC and WB needs to amp up their diversity factor. So does Marvel, but they are also making strides in the right direction with Chadwick Boseman as Black Panther and Anthony Mackie as Falcon. Two black superheroes out of the six original Avengers, the twins and the upcoming Phase Three line-up with Captain Marvel and Doctor Strange isn’t horrendous, but it could use some work. As for official DC casting, we at least have one woman (Gadot), one LGBT actor (Miller) and one African-American (Fisher) among the League. But Gibson would make a nice addition.
Plans for Justice League have been kept under wraps, with limited and questionable information leaking out of the woodworks. It’ll be interesting to see which version of Green Lantern DC ends up using. Given the gritty and dark tone the universe seems to be taking (see Man of Steel), Stewart might be the optimal choice. As a former marine, he’s pretty rough-and-tough and badass when it comes to the art of war. However, Jordan has that lighthearted humor that would do well in softening up the movies. Still, why couldn’t Gibson play Jordan? We know how crazy picky fundamentalist comic book fans get be, but this is something the WB should consider.
Aside from a two-part Justice League event — Part 1 is coming out in 2017 and Part 2 in 2019 with films sprinkled in between — Green Lantern will also appear in his own standalone movie in 2020.
