‘Green Lantern’ Casts Finn Wittrock in the Lead Role of Upcoming HBO Max Series
In superhero movies, Green Lantern has become a bit of a punchline. The film, a big, expensive production that gave Ryan Reynolds a CGI suit, flopped when it debuted in 2011 and has been derided ever since, if not completely forgotten. However, it remains a valuable IP for Warner Bros., and we reported last October that HBO Max was developing a series based on the character, with Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim, and Seth Grahame-Smith as executive producers and Grahame-Smith as showrunner.
According to Variety, Finn Wittrock has been cast as Guy Gardner, the series' Green Lantern. There have been several Green Lanterns over the years, with Reynolds playing Hal Jordan, but Gardner is “a hulking mass of masculinity, and, as rendered in the comics, an embodiment of 1980s hyper-patriotism,” according to Variety. Guy, on the other hand, is endearing.” “The story spans decades and galaxies, beginning on Earth in 1941 with the very first Green Lantern, secretly gay FBI agent Alan Scott, and ending in 1984 with cocky alpha male Gardner and half-alien Bree Jarta,” Variety adds. They'll be joined by a slew of other Lanterns, ranging from comic book favorites to never-before-seen characters.”
Wittrock is an intriguing actor who has appeared in series such as American Horror Story and Ratched, as well as films such as The Big Short and The Last Black Man in San Francisco. He walks the fine line between smarmy and charming, and it will be interesting to see how he portrays Green Lantern and what the show has in store for the character.
It's also worth noting that Warner Bros. is not only content to keep Green Lantern on HBO Max, but is also confident in this group of executive producers, despite the fact that Berlanti and Guggenheim were both credited writers on the disastrous 2011 film. It's also a big show of faith in Grahame-Smith to take on this character.
We also don't know if WB intends to connect this to other DC superhero properties or if they're attempting to build a slightly more upscale superhero property, something that's above what's going on in the "Arrowverse" but doesn't reach the significance of the feature films.
Regardless, this is a new beginning for Green Lantern, and Wittrock is an intriguing choice for the role (although personally, I wish they would have chosen a Black actor for John Stewart as Green Lantern). Now we'll have to wait and see how they flesh it out, and if this new approach can succeed in the brightest day or darkest night.
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