Editor’s Note: The following interview contains minor spoilers for Lanterns Episode 6.
As HBOs Lanterns The series continues toward the finale and confirms even more connections to it James Gunnis the broader DCU. While the show begins with Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler) as Earth’s Green Lantern, the situation changes after the 2016 Rushville investigation leads to an explosive showdown between Hal, John Stewart (Aaron Pierre) and the Manhunter (Poorna Jagannathan). When John finally turns down the chance to wear the ring himself, the door opens for Guy Gardner (Nathan Fillion) to become the next Green Lantern – and as LanternsThe latest episode shows that there is no love lost between the man who was originally nominated to replace Hal Jordan and the gym teacher who ultimately took the job.
Before the Lanterns At the premiere, Collider had the opportunity to speak with several members of the show’s cast and creative team, including the co-creator Chris Mundy. Throughout the interview, which you can watch above or read below, Mundy discusses the process of finding the right balance between each challenge True detective and other fantastic Green Lantern story components, such as LanternsGuy Gardner’s version goes a step further than what fans of the character have previously experienced Supermanwhy John’s Spotlight episode almost aired later in the season, his plan for the show’s potential return after Season 1, and more.
COLLIDER: I know there were some early comparisons in terms of the general mix of genres in the series True detective and things like that, but I was interested to hear how you wanted to find the balance between those darker thriller elements and the more humorous and fantastical elements that are almost more emblematic of the Green Lantern story.
CHRIS MUNDY: Yes, it’s a difficult balance. Hopefully we try to do such a good job that people will accept their mix. It was strange things coming in, obviously we’re starting to do that 60 minutes At the interview, you’re suddenly in Hal’s shoes, and he’s in a suit, and then you have this weird scene of borderline child abuse, but then Hal and John, and then the car immediately flies away.
So in a way we gave everyone our all in the first five minutes, but after that we really wanted to slow it down and ground ourselves. It’s like, “Okay, the mystery is going to be based in this city. We’re going to be in western Nebraska.” We wanted to delve into the relationship between Hal and John and make people feel like they live in it, and that they live in some sort of dirt and dust in western Nebraska. Once that’s the case, gradually bring in the comic stuff.
Even the way we created the construct started small and then grew larger. The suit comes back at the end of Episode 2, but each time we wanted to put one on, and when we were sure we’d done a good job with it, then we added the next layer of the thing.
This is a less serious question, but I was curious to hear who’s idea it was to make “Brand New Key” the song that Hal deliberately chooses on the jukebox to start a bar fight.
MUNDY: You know what’s so funny? It was like we knew we wanted it. We were in three different places. I was in my office, Damon (Lindelof) was in his office, Tom (King) was in Washington, DC, and we knew we were going to do the gag of the song. I texted the three of them and said, “We should end up with a song.” And how, Two seconds later, Damon wrote back: “Brand New Key.” And the second you read it, we were like, “Oh yeah, that’s exactly it.”
It’s fantastic. Every time it started again, I had to smile to myself. It was great.
MUNDY: Yes, same thing. I’ve seen it a million times and it still makes me laugh.
‘Lanterns’ creator wanted to take Nathan Fillion’s Guy Gardner ‘a step further’ than James Gunn’s ‘Superman’
“You can play this character as much or as little funny as you want.”
I had the opportunity to ask Damon and Tom’s thoughts about including Guy Gardner in the story, so I thought you’d be a good person to ask about that too. How quickly did you know you wanted him on the show, and what did you really want to emphasize about the differences in the character? Lanterns compared to the version in which we meet Superman?
MUNDY: We knew pretty much straight away when we were filming the two time periods that we wanted him on the show at least a little bitjust to explain to the world where we were in time. Hal was gone, and also to explain that we knew the time period. You know what I mean?
And we had a lot of license from that. You can play this character as often or as little comically as you like. James (Gunn) had obviously played him for a comedy SupermanAnd We just felt like it was a license to take it a step further, especially because the first time he talks to John it’s kind of controversial. So we just did it and waited to see if we got any notes, and people seemed to like it. And Nathan (Fillion) is so good that that helps. They trusted him on the side, partly because I think he’s just that good.
Given that he’s the Green Lantern in at least 2026, the natural question is, “Well, we know Hal and John are on the show. So what happened in those moments in between?” The premiere ends in a way that I think will shock and surprise many viewers – it certainly surprised me. Can you offer any reassurance to fans who may be confused or perhaps a little upset about this particular story choice? Because it’s a big event and the repercussions affect the rest of the show.
MUNDY: It’s a big deal. I don’t know if there’s anything that gives them peace of mind. I have to say that we didn’t take this lightly and that we want to earn it emotionally. We did it to deepen our understanding of both John and Hal. No matter the degree to which one may be reassured by this, it serves Hal’s character and John’s character.
Episode 3 is a very character-driven episode in many ways – it focuses on John, his backstory, his very complicated relationship with his family, particularly his parents. But considering where it appears in the season, it strays a bit from the murder mystery that takes place in Rushville. In terms of storytelling, did it ever feel a bit risky to put more of an emphasis on the characters at this point in the series?
MUNDY: Originally, when we finished the season, this episode always existed. Initially it was fifth place. There was a point where we decided that we felt free to take it further, that we had confidence in the world that we had created in (Episode) 1 and 2, and that in some ways it was more important to have a deeper understanding of John, and in doing so you also learn about Hal. But we felt that in the (Episode) 3 spot, it was more important to understand the characters deeply than to make sure the story had momentum. But it was a big discussion. Like I said, it was originally the fifth part, and it still took a while before we moved on to (episode) 3.
Chris Mundy reveals how many more “lantern” Easter eggs are on the way
“You get a sense of him early on and more of him a little later, so we felt like that was enough.”
There are quite a few name drops from other Lanterns in the show. We get a Ch’p reference. I think the Mogo reference will make fans smile a little. Have there been any discussions about including more explicit cameos, or is there perhaps something you could prepare for the finale? I’m excited to see if we’ll see more.
MUNDY: We’ve talked about it, but I don’t think that ever happened… Looking back, there are often things in a writers’ room that they talk about and say, “Oh, wow,” things that lasted a long time and you just ended up not doing, or even things that you wrote where there was just too much material and you pulled it.
So, We talked about it, but we felt like our story was detailed enough and we felt like we just wanted to delve further into John and Hal. And we knew we were going to use Sinestro this season, so we knew people were waiting to really feel that kind of presence, that that was coming. You get a hint of him early on and more of him a little later, so we felt like that was enough. And on the other hand, it wouldn’t serve the purpose of propulsion; It would interfere with the emotional things we were doing with Hal and John.
I would be remiss if I didn’t finally ask about the longer plan for these characters. Obviously John will appear in another DC project, but if given the opportunity to do more Lanternswhat is the general feeling behind continuing the show?
MUNDY: The general feeling is if people are interested, knock on wood, if people like the show and there seems to be enough interest, we’d like to do it. Honest. I think you want to end in a place where you feel like this would be a fall season, but Emotionally there is so much more to go on with. With a bit of luck there will be even more.
New episodes of Lanterns Premieres Sundays on HBO and HBO Max.
Lanterns
- Release date
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August 16, 2026
- network
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HBO
