Warning! This article contains SPOILERS for HBO’s Lanterns episode 4.Nathan Fillion is one of the three talented actors who play a version of Green Lantern in the new DC series from HBO, Lanterns, and that project has now brought back a villain that was used in an ill-received movie. Green Lantern is one of DC’s most powerful heroes, being able to take on even Superman in a fight if necessary.
That said, the character’s footprint in live-action is pretty small. Given how 2011’s Green Lantern movie with Ryan Reynolds was a major box office bomb, only grossing $237.2 million on a reported production budget of $200 million, it is easy to see why DC and Warner would feel uncertain about how to proceed with the character. That left Green Lantern out of the DCEU movie timeline.
Thankfully, James Gunn’s new DC Universe knows how to treat iconic characters from the comics. Just like Superman, Supergirl, and other heroes in the DCU got the short end of the stick in the old DCEU, Lanternsis the project that finally puts the Green Lantern Corps back in the spotlight. Kyle Chandler plays Hal Jordan, while Aaron Pierre gives life to John Stewart.
Sector 2814 · Corps EditionHow Well Do You Know
Green Lantern Lore?
🌟CorpsProtect
💎RingsPower
☠VillainsFear
💡LanternsWill
🌌UniverseOa
IN BRIGHTEST DAY… →
01
The Green Lantern Corps is an intergalactic peacekeeping force powered by the emotional spectrum. Each Green Lantern’s ring is fueled by a specific emotion. Which emotion powers the Green Lantern rings?
AHope
BCourage
CWillpower
DLove
✓ Correct! Willpower is the green light on the emotional spectrum, sitting at the very center. The Guardians of the Universe chose willpower because it is the most stable and disciplined of all emotions, making it the ideal force for a peacekeeping corps that spans 3,600 sectors of space.
✗ Your ring’s charge is low on that one! The answer is Willpower. Hope powers the Blue Lantern Corps, Love fuels the Star Sapphires, and Courage isn’t a force on the emotional spectrum. Willpower — the green light — is the foundation of every construct a Green Lantern creates.
02
The most famous Green Lantern in DC Comics is a test pilot from Coast City who was chosen by a dying alien’s ring to become the Green Lantern of Sector 2814. Who is this character?
AJohn Stewart
BGuy Gardner
CKyle Rayner
DHal Jordan
✓ Correct! Hal Jordan was introduced in Showcase #22 (1959), inheriting the ring from the dying alien Abin Sur. As a fearless test pilot, Hal was the perfect candidate — his indomitable willpower made him one of the greatest Green Lanterns in the history of the Corps.
✗ Your ring’s charge is low on that one! The answer is Hal Jordan. John Stewart is a fellow Earth Lantern and architect, Guy Gardner is the brash backup Lantern, and Kyle Rayner became a Lantern after Hal’s fall. But Hal Jordan is the test pilot from Coast City who defined the modern Green Lantern legacy.
03
The Green Lantern Corps is headquartered on a planet at the center of the universe, where the Guardians of the Universe reside. What is the name of this planet?
AMaltus
BOa
CMogo
DZamaron
✓ Correct! Oa sits at the center of the DC Universe and serves as the headquarters of the Green Lantern Corps. It houses the Great Battery — the Central Power Battery that channels willpower energy to every Lantern ring across all 3,600 sectors of space.
✗ Your ring’s charge is low on that one! The answer is Oa. Maltus is the Guardians’ original homeworld before they migrated, Mogo is a sentient planet that is itself a Green Lantern, and Zamaron is the home of the Star Sapphires. Oa is the iconic green-tinged world at the heart of it all.
04
Sinestro was once the greatest Green Lantern before he was corrupted by his own desire for order and control. He created his own corps powered by a different emotion on the emotional spectrum. What emotion powers Sinestro’s yellow rings?
ARage
BAvarice
CFear
DDeath
✓ Correct! The Sinestro Corps wields yellow rings powered by fear. Sinestro believed that fear was a more effective tool for maintaining order than willpower, and he recruited the most terrifying beings in the universe to prove it. The Sinestro Corps War remains one of the greatest Green Lantern storylines.
✗ Your ring’s charge is low on that one! The answer is Fear. Rage powers the Red Lanterns, Avarice (greed) fuels the Orange Lantern Larfleeze, and Death powers the Black Lanterns. Sinestro’s yellow rings channel fear — the direct opposite of willpower on the emotional spectrum.
05
The Green Lantern ring is one of the most powerful weapons in the DC Universe. It can create solid constructs of green light shaped by the wearer’s imagination. What is the ring’s one notable weakness in classic stories?
AWater
BThe color yellow
CDarkness
DMagic
✓ Correct! For decades, the Green Lantern ring was powerless against anything colored yellow. This “yellow impurity” was later revealed to be caused by Parallax, the fear entity, imprisoned within the Central Power Battery on Oa. Once Parallax was removed, experienced Lanterns could overcome the weakness.
✗ Your ring’s charge is low on that one! The answer is the color yellow. Water was the weakness of the original Golden Age Green Lantern Alan Scott (whose ring was magic-based), not the Corps rings. The classic Silver Age weakness was yellow — leading to many creative villain strategies involving yellow objects.
06
John Stewart is a prominent Green Lantern who became a household name through his role in the Justice League animated series (2001–2006). Before becoming a Green Lantern, what was John Stewart’s profession?
AScientist
BMilitary officer / Marine
CPolice officer
DArchitect
✓ Correct! John Stewart was an architect before becoming a Green Lantern, which is reflected in his precise, structurally detailed ring constructs. While some later adaptations added a military background, his classic comic book profession is architect — and it shapes how he uses the ring in beautifully engineered ways.
✗ Your ring’s charge is low on that one! The answer is Architect. While the Justice League animated series gave John a Marine background, his original and most iconic profession in the comics is architect. This is why his ring constructs are known for their precise, detailed engineering — he literally designs them.
07
The emotional spectrum in DC Comics features seven corps, each tied to a different color and emotion. Which corps is powered by rage and wields red rings?
AThe Sinestro Corps
BThe Red Lantern Corps
CThe Orange Lantern Corps
DThe Black Lantern Corps
✓ Correct! The Red Lantern Corps, led by Atrocitus, is fueled by pure rage. Their rings replace the wearer’s blood with burning red plasma, and they vomit corrosive napalm-like blood as a weapon. Atrocitus founded the corps to seek vengeance against the Guardians for the Manhunter massacre of Sector 666.
✗ Your ring’s charge is low on that one! The answer is The Red Lantern Corps. The Sinestro Corps wields yellow rings of fear, the Orange Lantern is Larfleeze alone (powered by avarice), and the Black Lanterns are undead entities. The Red Lantern Corps, led by Atrocitus, channels pure burning rage.
08
Parallax is one of the most significant threats in Green Lantern lore. It is the living embodiment of fear and has possessed multiple Green Lanterns. In the iconic “Emerald Twilight” storyline, which Green Lantern did Parallax corrupt and drive to destroy the Corps?
AKyle Rayner
BJohn Stewart
CHal Jordan
DGuy Gardner
✓ Correct! In “Emerald Twilight” (Green Lantern #48–50, 1994), a grief-stricken Hal Jordan — devastated by the destruction of Coast City — was corrupted by Parallax. He defeated every Green Lantern in his path, drained the Central Power Battery, and destroyed the Corps, becoming the villain Parallax. Geoff Johns later revealed that the fear entity had possessed Hal all along.
✗ Your ring’s charge is low on that one! The answer is Hal Jordan. After Coast City was destroyed by Mongul and the Cyborg Superman, Hal’s grief made him vulnerable to Parallax. He marched through the Corps, defeated every Lantern, and absorbed the Central Battery’s power. Kyle Rayner received the last ring after Hal’s fall, becoming the sole Green Lantern for years.
Ring Scan CompleteYour Power Level
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Are you worthy of the ring — or does your willpower need recharging?
↻ RECHARGE THE RING
In Lanterns‘ first three episodes, the space cops deal with an unknown alien threat in the small town of Rushville, Nebraska. ATrue Detective-like investigation led to the revelation that a group of aliens were on a revenge mission after a Manhunter, who changed forms and was pretending to be a human. It is through that setup that Lanternsepisode 4 brings back a villain from Reynolds’ Green Lantern movie.
Lanterns Comes Up With A Twist For Hector Hammond’s New DC Appearance
No, I don’t mean that HBO’s Lanternsis fully bringing back an actor from the 2011 DC movie as their character, simply using a certain DC player in a new way. That would be Hector Hammond, who was played by Peter Sarsgaard in the Green Lantern movie. In the film, Hammond was exposed to Parallax, with his brain growing exponentially, which included the character developing powers. Hammond served as Green Lantern’s main villain for most of the movie, driven mad by his mutation, before Parallax emerged from within at the end of the film and killed him.
In Lanterns, there are a few similarities between Hammond’s new appearance and the 2011 movie. Like in the film, Hammond serves as the initial threat of the episode, trying to throw Hal and John off the Manhunter’s scent, and threatening John’s family. In the end, he relents, claiming that William Macon was the Manhunter. However, as we learn at the end of Lanternsepisode 4, John and Hal actually believe that William’s wife, Zoe Macon, is the real Manhunter, having survived the giant laser from the sky that had seemingly killed her earlier. Hammond was also revealed to be the owner of Atlas.
Will Lanterns Bring Back A Third Green Lantern Movie Villain?
Hammond’s role in Lanternsmarks an interesting trend. Before he debuted in the new DC series, another villain from the 2011 Green Lantern movie made his way to Lanterns. That is Sinestro, who was played by Mark Strong in the movie and became a Yellow Lantern at the very end, and is now embodied by Ulrich Thomsen in the DCU series. So, with Sinestro in a couple of episodes as Hal Jordan flies to the prison he is in to get advice, and Hammond now working for the Manhunter, the only main villain from the 2011 movie that needs to appear is Parallax.
Parallax is the fear entity in the DCU. Interestingly, this trend has now established itself after months of DC fans coming up with theories for how Parallax could play a role in Lanterns. With Hal Jordan turning up dead in the DCU’s 2026 timeline, many believe that a Parallax storyline that ends with a version of Green Lantern: Rebirth and a younger actor being cast as Hal could be in play. Additionally, Hal’s attitude towards John, the difference between his demeanor in 2016 and a decade prior through the Hal-ogram, and Sinestro’s influence over him tease how Parallax could be coming in Lanterns.
TV-MA
DramaMysteryActionAdventureScience Fiction
Release Date
August 16, 2026
Network
HBO
Showrunner
Chris Mundy
Directors
Alik Sakharov, James Hawes, Stephen Williams
Writers
Damon Lindelof, Chris Mundy
Kyle Chandler
Hal Jordan- Aaron Pierre
John Stewart
Franchise(s)
DC Universe
Creator(s)
Tom King, Chris Mundy, Damon Lindelof
