The original Green Arrow may be leaving the small screen in the not-too-distant future, but HBO Max has guaranteed that some Green Lanterns are on the way with the Arrow-verse's Greg Berlanti at the helm. Yes, that is Green Lanterns, plural. The upcoming streaming service will deliver not one but two Green Lanterns to television, along with an infamous DC Comics villain known for menacing Green Lanterns. The big news comes courtesy of HBO Max Head of Original Content Sarah Aubrey:
Greg [Berlanti] said that I can share a few little tidbits about Green Lantern. We're in the early stages of talking to him about it, but he did say that the series, so far, will span several decades and focus on the origin story of two major Green Lanterns from Earth, while going into the story in space and Green Lantern favorite character Sinestro.
Back when news first broke that a Green Lantern series was really coming to HBO Max, few details were available. At the time, all that was released was that the adventure would be "going to space," Greg Berlanti would be involved, and it would release on HBO Max. Now, there will be two major Green Lanterns with an origin story, an arc that will span several decades, and featuring legendary Green Lantern villain Sinestro in space.
Perhaps the biggest question in the wake of Sarah Aubrey's comments to TV Guide (other than if the show will be better received than the widely panned 2011 Green Lantern movie starring Ryan Reynolds) is: which two Green Lanterns will have their origin stories told on HBO Max?
The two most obvious candidates are Hal Jordan, a.k.a. the Green Lantern played by Ryan Reynolds on the big screen and arguably the most famous of the Lanterns, and John Stewart. Others, like Guy Gardner, Kyle Rayner, and Jessica Cruz, could deliver a character fewer folks are likely to already be familiar with, and could therefore be solid candidates.
John Stewart could be a particularly interesting choice, however, if HBO Max borrows a character and actor from the Arrow-verse. Arrow has dropped Easter eggs that none other than Oliver's right-hand man, John Diggle, could be the Arrow-verse version of John Stewart with a Green Lantern destiny.
The "Crisis on Infinite Earths" crossover on The CW just established that Green Lanterns exist on Earth-12, and David Ramsey has spoken about how his character could anchor a spinoff, with more Green Lantern nods in Arrow's eighth and final season.
Could HBO Max reveal that its Green Lantern show is set on Earth-12 and John Diggle hopped away from Earth Prime despite the presence of his wife and kids there? Or an Earth-12 version of the character?
We can always hope, since the potential Arrow spinoff seems unlikely to feature David Ramsey, and the "Crisis" crossover kinda sorta connected everything ranging from the DCEU with an incredibly unexpected cameo from a Justice League star to Michael Keaton's Batman into its multiverse. And Greg Berlanti is involved with the Arrow-verse as well as HBO Max's Green Lantern!
Until more details are released about the upcoming Green Lantern series, superhero fans can have fun speculating about the who, what, when, and where. At least the confirmation of Sinestro means the villain has been revealed. As for the rest of what's in store on the upcoming streamer, we can only wait and see.
While HBO Max and the Green Lantern TV show aren't available yet, there are still plenty of TV options. The Arrow-verse (now comprised of six shows and with more still coming) carries on at The CW, and the winter 2020 premiere lineup is packed with non-superhero series as well.
