The upcoming DC series Lanterns could set John Stewart up for a much bigger role in the DC Universe. Starring Aaron Pierre as John Stewart and Kyle Chandler as Hal Jordan, the show will be the first DC Studios TV series to be fully separate from the old DCEU.
However, the showrunner Chris Mundy has teased that John Stewart can move beyond the show and may appear in other DCU projects, other than the upcoming Man of Tomorrow.
Although Lanterns is a part of the DCU, Mundy emphasized that the show is made as a standalone story. The first few episodes will focus on introducing John Stewart and establishing him as a Green Lantern and his partnership with Hal Jordan without initially relying on other DCU characters before potentially expanding his role elsewhere.
Lanterns Could Send John Stewart Into Bigger DCU Crossovers
In an interview with The New York Times, Mundy confirmed that Lanterns was made to run as a multi-season series. He said, “We’re trying to really put John Stewart on his feet inside our own show, but then, once he’s on his feet, he can walk around in the rest of the DC-verse.”
Writer and producer Tom King has reportedly hinted at a major plot twist that can be considered controversial by fans. Co-creator Damon Lindelof has also acknowledged that the team has “a real fear of screwing it up.” They want the audience to “feel how much we cared about Hal and John.”
These comments highlight how important Lanterns could be for DCU. The show needs to establish Stewart and Jordan’s characters successfully before they can become a larger part of the franchise. We already know John Stewart is going to be in Man of Tomorrow.
The series will follow Lantern legend Hal Jordan and new recruit John Stewart as they investigate a murder in Rushville, Nebraska, which leads them to a darker mystery on Earth. Apart from Pierre and Chandler, it also stars Kelly Macdonald, Laura Linney, Jason Ritter, Ulrich Thomsen, Poorna Jagannathan, Nathan Fillion, Garret Dillahunt, Jasmine Cephas Jones, and J. Alphonse Nicholson.
The series will premiere on August 16, 2026, on HBO and HBO Max.
