In brightest day, in blackest night, HBO Max has set their sight on Seth Grahame-Smith (THE LEGO BATMAN MOVIE) and Marc Guggenheim (GREEN LANTERN, Arrow) to write its Green Lantern series. In addition to serving as a writer on the project, Grahame-Smith, who at one point was attached to write and direct THE FLASH, will showrun the series, which has been given a ten-part order. Berlanti Productions will produce in association with Warner Bros.
The drama will depict the adventures of a multitude of Lanterns, including Guy Gardner, Jessica Cruz, Simon Baz, and Alan Scott — Earth’s first Green Lantern, who, true to the comics, is a gay man — and many more. The series will also include fan favorites such as Sinestro and Kilowog, and will also introduce new heroes to the ranks of the Green Lantern Corps. (via Deadline)
If Guggenheim's name is setting off the nerd alarm inside your head it's likely due to the fact that he was a contributing writer on director Martin Campbell's GREEN LANTERN, otherwise known as the live-action adaptation starring Ryan Reynolds that should never have seen the light of day. Ahem. I'm just kidding. Or am I?
When the project was first announced back at the end of 2019, Berlanti said that it would be “unlike anything seen on television.” He then added, “In what promises to be our biggest DC show ever made, we will be going to space with a Green Lantern television series.”
Meanwhile, at TCA earlier this year, HBO Max Head of Original Content Sarah Aubrey teased that the series would “span several decades on focus on two stories about Green Lanterns on Earth.” It was also said that a portion of the series will focus on the fan-favorite Green Lantern villain Sinestro. Whether this will be an origin story of sorts or an in-depth look at the character has yet to be confirmed.
If first is the worst and second is the best does this mean that we should expect great things from this upcoming series? I sure hope so because from what I remember of GREEN LANTERN (2011), Guggenheim sure has a lot to make up for after his first pass on the iconic Green Lantern property.
How do you feel about Grahame-Smith and Guggenheim leading the charge for this promising project? Personally, I'm down for anything Green Lantern. Frankly, I'm surprised that it's taken DC this long to get a project like this together. That said, better late than never, right? Also, it's been made clear that the show plans to include some fantastic new Lanterns as a part of the mix, and I can't wait to see Jessica Cruz and Simon Baz strut their stuff. Let's go!