At the beginning of the year, Furious 7 star Tyrese Gibson kicked off his campaign to play Green Lantern in the DC Cinematic Universe. Although the actor met with Warner Bros in January, there hasn’t been any new developments other than Gibson’s persistent enthusiasm to wield the power ring on the big screen. Now after several months of silence, Gibson is hinting that he may be moving closer to playing the Emerald Knight.
Earlier this week after the rumor hit that Chris Pine is closing in on a deal to play Hal Jordan, the first human member of the Green Lantern Corps, Gibson posted this piece of fan-art on Instagram. On the left Pine has been made up to look like Jordan, while Gibson is suited up as fan favorite John Stewart on the right.
Gibson later told ET that while he can’t comment on specifics from behind the scenes, he is determined to play John Stewart both as a fan of the character and after prodding from his fans. Gibson said:
There are certain things I can't speak on. But I will say, however this works out, it's definitely the fans' fault. I was at home minding my own business and fans start creating these fan-made videos of me as Green Lantern and I looked into it. I've been a fan of the Green Lantern. I took the oath, and I had a meeting at Warner Bros. and certain things were said and talked about. We'll just see what happens.
Another rumor from earlier in the week suggested that the 2020 Green Lantern reboot will feature multiple human Green Lantern leads, so it wouldn’t be surprising if Gibson ended up sharing top billing with someone else. That said, without being in these meetings, it’s hard to tell whether Gibson is still simply campaigning or is truly on Warner Bros’ radar. Part of me wonders why Tyrese would still be promoting his Green Lantern campaign if Warner Bros already told him they’re going in a different direction.
This leads me to believe while him officially being cast hasn’t happened yet, he is making progress. Of course, speaking prematurely on the matter might mess things up, and Warner Bros and DC could always decide to pick another actor to play Stewart, assuming a contract hasn’t been signed, of course. At this point, I think we can all agree that Gibson’s chances of scoring the role are higher than most, but that doesn’t guarantee he’ll obtain his prize.
Several reports indicate that Warner Bros is planning to unveil the full Justice League lineup at San Diego Comic-Con next month, which could include one or more Green Lanterns. If true, that means one way or another, the identity of that least one of the protectors of Sector 2814 and their actor will be revealed. Whether that’s Gibson, Pine or someone else remains to be seen.
