James Gunn has officially addressed growing confusion among DCU fans regarding the Green Lantern Corps’ lore, reassuring viewers that incoming episodes of Lanterns will clarify why multiple ring-bearers are active on Earth.
Lanterns’ debut season ended with John Stewart finding his former mentor, Hal Jordan, dead in 2026, with his ring missing. The cliffhanger led to several fan theories regarding where Hal’s ring went. Soon after the episode aired, Tom King, one of the show’s creators, said that the ring is with Guy Gardner.
Fans are still not happy with the explanation since Guy has already appeared in Gunn’s 2025 movie Superman, using a ring. This raises the question of why there are two Green Lanterns on Earth at the same time and whether it is because of Superman and Kara.
Since Green Lanterns are tasked with protecting Earth from extraterrestrial threats, one fan theory suggests that the Kryptonians might be the reason behind this anomaly.
One fan on Threads, @the_solitary_chirper, asked Gunn, “Am I correct in assuming that the presence of Clark and Kara on Earth is why the Guardians suddenly decided the backwaters of a sector Earth is in needed more than one Green Lantern? Is that why we have both Hal AND Guy?”
In his response, Gunn assured, “You’ll find out.” Viewers are hopeful that the upcoming episodes of Lanterns will unravel the mystery soon.
When is the next episode of Lanterns being released on HBO Max?
The second episode of Lanterns arrives on HBO Max this Sunday, August 23, 2026. It will likely continue the 2016 timeline where Hal and John will dig deeper into their encounter with the alien.
The episode might also provide some clues as to why the creature was hiding in Rushville. The series is also expected to explore Hal and John’s strained relationship.
Lanterns stars Kyle Chandler as Hal Jordan and Aaron Pierre as John Stewart, alongside Kelly Macdonald, Garret Dillahunt, Poorna Jagannathan, and Nathan Fillion.
