Among the upcoming DC TV shows officially slated for the DC Universe franchise is the Green Lantern-focused Lanterns, which earned an eight-episode order in June and will now air on HBO first, then be released to those who have a Max subscription, as opposed to being a Max-exclusive series as originally intended. Lanterns will follow Hal Jordan and John Stewart being “drawn into a dark, earth-based mystery as they investigate a murder in the American heartland,” and over the weekend, it was rumored that Josh Brolin has been offered the role of Hal. This has prompted a lot of outrage from fans who think Brolin isn’t a good fit to play the first human member of the Green Lantern Corps, but there’s a specific reason why I think this could end up being a brilliant move for Lanterns.
To be clear, I’m not saying that I don’t have any concerns about Josh Brolin play Hal Jordan, with that alleged casting update being shared by Nexus Point News. For one thing, while I understand DC wanting to loop in the man who already has comic book media cred from playing Jonah Hex, Thanos and Cable, it would be nice for a lesser-known actor to leave their mark on the character so that Lanterns can give their career a major boost. I also understand the complaint that Brolin is a little too old to be playing Hal, as he and John are usually depicted as being around the same age, but this change could be worth it if Lanterns is going in the narrative direction I think it is.
Assuming Josh Brolin will play Hal Jordan, or even if another actor around his age is cast in the role instead, I suspect this means that Lanterns intends to adapt the emerald ring-slinger’s Parallax arc. Back in the ‘90s, after his hometown of Coast City was destroyed by Cyborg Superman and Mongul, Hal went insane and attacked Oa to destroy the Central Power Battery and absorb all its power for himself. He killed almost all the Guardians of the Universe and decimated the Corps, though both would later be undone. It was also revealed years later that rather than Hal simply going bad, he’d been influenced by the Parallax entity, the embodiment of fear.
When it comes to Parallax, tackling that chapter of Hal Jordan’s history doesn’t work unless he’s been active in the Green Lantern Corps for a long time. So in that sense, I could understand why DC Studios would want someone like Josh Brolin to play Hal. He can bring the right kind of weight to a character who’s been patrolling Sector 2814 for many years and would be tasked with showing the ropes to rookie John Stewart. When the time comes for Hal transforms into Parallax, we also know Brolin can effectively pull off such a villainous turn.
If all this ends up happening, then I can set aside my nitpicks about Hal Jordan and John Stewart not being closer together in age. Frankly, casting Brolin would also be a wise move assuming that there will come a day when Hal is included in one of the upcoming DC movies, whether or not he becomes Parallax. However, I’d be remiss if I also didn’t point out the obvious: let’s spend some time seeing Hal be a hero onscreen rather than have him become Parallax right off the bat. He deserves time to shine as a protagonist first, if only to help further wash the taste of Ryan Reynolds’ Green Lantern movie out of our mouths.
Lanterns doesn’t have a premiere date set yet, but its behind-the-scenes talent includes Ozark’s Chris Mundy serving as showrunner and executive producer, and Damon Lindelof and Tom King writing and executive producing alongside Mundy. Needless to say we’ll let you know if Josh Brolin is confirmed to play Hal Jordan, as well as pass along who’s selected as the DCU’s John Stewart.
