Rumor: A shortlist shines a light on casting choices for Green Lantern Corps

Lately, it would seem as it Parallax himself wouldn’t be able to stop the GREEN LANTERN CORPS rumors and news from willing itself onto my list of articles to write. In fact, just this past week we’ve inquired about who you would cast in the roles of Lanterns Hal Jordan and John Stewart, in addition to compiling a list of 8 things we want to see in the upcoming film. Today, we’ve got a rumored, not-so-short list of names being tossed around by Warner Bros. and DC Entertainment regarding who they think should wield the all-powerful rings when GREEN LANTERN CORPS takes flight. Let’s have a look at the list, shall we?

Now, it’s important to mention that it's way too early for these names to be thought of as anything but possibilities. That being said, we can still have a little fun by theorizing whether or not any of the actors I’m about to list would actually be worthy of the Green Lantern’s light. Okay, enough stalling, here is the list: Tom Cruise, Joel McHale, Bradley Cooper, Ryan Reynolds, Armie Hammer, and Jake Gyllenhaal!

Okay, so I’m going to put this out there, just so there’s no confusion – none of these actors have been confirmed for what one would assume (based on skin color alone) is the role of Hal Jordan. Taking that into consideration, let’s break this list down and have some fun.

First on the list is Tom Cruise. This pick feels like a real stretch to me. It’s a given that Cruise’s star power would be a welcomed addition in creating hype for the movie, but I just don’t see it. Plus, isn’t he a bit long in the tooth to play the ace pilot turned space cop? Next, we have Joel McHale. The only reason I could see McHale being a possibility is because this guy has been knocking on Hollywood’s door for a breakout role for years – and GREEN LANTERN CORPS would surely propel him to great heights if he were to join the project. He’s got the comedic chops to portray a snarky and light-hearted Jordan, but would he be able to handle the action bits as well?

Then there’s Ryan Reynolds. Wait, what? I’m going to give this one a big old “no” in terms of it coming to pass. Unless there was something in the water over at DC, I really can’t see Reynolds wanting to return to the franchise. Then again, Reynolds does have a habit of redeeming himself when it comes to suiting up as a besmirched superhero on film. Hmmmmmm. Bradley Cooper is an interesting choice, but then again, I see him moving on to bigger and better things rather than signing a contract for what I would assume will be a multi-picture deal. Armie Hammer is a likely candidate, I would think. He definitely has the look, and I can see him joining the ranks of the DCEU with a lot of enthusiasm. Lasty, there’s Jake Gyllenhaal, who I can totally see in the role of Hal Jordan. I think of him as a darker and more broodtastic actor, but I’ve been surprised by actors and their performances many times in the past, so who knows?

Regardless of who is deemed worthy enough to police the spaceways for GREEN LANTERN CORPS, you can bet that we’ll be hearing many more whispers of castings and character cameos before the film lands in theaters on July 24, 2020.