After making a dark and dynamic debut with Creature Commandos, James Gunn’s DCU will blast into theaters with the David Corenswet-led Superman, but I’d be lying if I said I’m not inherently more amped up about HBO’s Lanterns series than most upcoming 2025 TV shows. With an abundance of talents behind the camera, including comics mastermind Tom King, the series has amassed a stacked cast of both familiar characters (like the villainous Sinestro) and original ones. And the latest new star seemingly throws a wrench into love interest rumors for Kyle Chandler’s Hal Jordan.
Lanterns Reportedly Cast Matlock Star And Gravity Falls Vet Jason Ritter
TV veteran and famed son of John Ritter (even if his Matlock co-star didn’t know it), Jason Ritter is reported to have signed on for the cast of Lanterns, and as much as I’d love for this to be some kind of wild Gravity Falls crossover idea, that just wouldn’t make any sense. But if the report’s details are indeed legit, then it throws a ring-crafted wrench into prior rumors about Hal Jordan’s love life.
According to The Insneider (via ComicBookMovie), Ritter is joining the upcoming DC TV show to play an as-yet-unnamed character who is married to the character portrayed by Boardwalk Empire alum Kelly MacDonald. She was previously cast as Sheriff Kerry, who’s described as being very devoted to both her hometown and her family. And it would appear that Ritter will be the main component of that family.
How This Casting Potentially Affects Hal Jordan's Story
Prior to Kelly MacDonald's official casting news, the actress was part of her own rumor thread, which correctly pinpointed that she would be portraying the show's core law enforcement. But those rumors also indicated that her character would serve as Hal Jordan's romantic foil, which sparked its own subsection of comic-based theorizing to determine whether or not she'd be a remixed version of someone from the source material.
The prevailing notion had been that she'd be playing a sub-in for Carol Ferris, who has long been the most prominent love interest of Hal's, and who also eventually takes on the mantle of Star Sapphire. (Notably, Blake Lively portrayed Carol in Ryan Reynolds' arguably rewatchable 2011 effort Green Lantern, and the celebs are still together.) Of course, the fact that Kerry is a sheriff had already thrown doubt onto the Carol assumptions, and with Ritter now set as her husband, one can only wonder where those early rumors came from.
Unless...maybe the idea here is that Ritter's character will be a less-than-desirable hubby, inevitably sending his badge-toting wife right into Hal Jordan's beefy arms. That could make sense, especially if Ritter is already working full-time on Matlock and might only be utilized for a limited amount of Lanterns episodes. That's just me speculating, though. He may very well get his own ring at some point in the show.
Let's be real, though. The only person who should join Lanterns to play Kyle Chandler's love interest is his former Friday Night Lights wifey Connie Britton. Clear eyes, full hearts, can't handle yellow. Wait, that doesn't sound right...
One has to wonder whether we'll see Jason Ritter on Lanterns before we ever see his long-rumored cameo in Yellowjackets, which stars his real-life significant other Melanie Lynskey. Regardless, stay tuned for more casting news as we await the first official Lanterns trailer.
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