The DC Extended Universe is looking to expand mightily over the next few years both in theaters and in the streaming world on HBO Max. The streaming streak will kick off with James Gunn and John Cena’s Peacemaker before moving into a more intergalactic story with the Green Lantern Corps series.
While the Lanterns are key members in the history of DC Comics, their run in live-action projects has been underwhelming to say the least. Zack Snyder used them just for a tease in Zack Snyder’s Justice League, and we all remember the disappointment that was Ryan Reynolds’ Green Lantern solo movie from 2011.
The series is likely going to explore the earliest days of the Green Lantern Corps’ history, long before heroes like Hal Jordan or John Stewart were ever even born.
The New Role For Sinestro in Green Lantern Corps
While the series will focus on previously underutilized Lanterns like Guy Gardner and Jessica Cruz,it was recently revealed that the show is casting for the role of Thaal Sinestro.
Sinestro was brought to life in live-action by Mark Strong in the Green Lantern movie from a decade ago, mostly in the tough-guy-using-tough-love mentor role for Ryan Reynolds’ lead character. However, new information doesn’t exactly set into stone that he will be the main villain of this series at the moment, and possibly not for a while…
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Looking at the layout of the Green Lantern series, the team may be looking to set Sinestro up as a heroic figure fighting with the rest of the Corps in his early days.
Could We See Manhunters Or The Empire Of Tears In Green Lantern Corps
As for characters the show may use as villains in its first season, the team could potentially be looking at groups like the Manhunters or the Empire of Tears. Both of these groups have strong ties to the Green Lanterns in DC Comics and could certainly give the team a great deal of trouble in their first ten-episode saga.
The Manhunters were initially created by the Guardians of the Universe as a race of robotic androids that were meant to serve as an interstellar police force. They were modeled after the DC Martians, similar to the Martian Manhunter, as a way to take on evil all over the galaxy and eliminate threats as often as possible.
As for the Empire of Tears, they had control over three different galaxies with dark magic in the earliest days of DC history. They went up against the elders of Oa, who decided that the universe needed to be rid of magic in favor of science.
All of these decisions by HBO Max could be in play simply to distance this series as much as possible from the 2011 movie, which is regarded largely as a theatrical bomb and has become the butt of jokes throughout the DC fandom. These days, the biggest purpose of that film seems to be as a punch line for Ryan Reynolds jokes in his Deadpool movies.
Regardless, the Green Lantern Corps series is clearly taking a new direction when it comes to these long-standing galactic warriors. Having new villains in play and a new take on Sinestro could be just the recipe needed to help it stand out from the pack.
Who do you think will face of against the Lanterns in the Green Lantern Corps? Let us know you theories in the comment section below or over on our social media!
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