LANTERNS Midseason Trailer Teases Hal Jordan’s Dark Fate, Guy Gardner, Sinestro, and Cosmic Chaos
The midseason trailer for Lanterns has arrived, and things are about to get a whole lot stranger for John Stewart and Hal Jordan.
DC Studios and HBO have released a new look at the final three episodes of the season, teasing the cosmic side of the Green Lantern mythology, John’s encounter with Sinestro, the return of Guy Gardner, a glimpse into Hal’s childhood, and a major revelation about what happened in Rushville back in 2016.
For anyone waiting for the series to venture further beyond its Earth-based murder mystery, it looks like the best, and blackest, night is still ahead.
The biggest reveal concerns Kyle Chandler’s Hal Jordan. Following the events in Rushville, Hal was arrested and imprisoned for his role in the deaths of the townspeople.
The trailer shows he took the fall for Aaron Pierre’s John Stewart, and when the two unexpectedly reunite before Hal’s death, Hal makes sure John remembers exactly what he did for him.
That creates another big question. What happens between their reunion and the discovery of Hal’s frozen body in the football stadium?
John and Sheriff Kerry Kane eventually find Hal dead, and the trailer certainly makes his death look legitimate. Still, Lanterns is playing in a corner of the DC Universe where appearances can be deceiving.
One particularly strange shot shows the 2026 version of Hal waking up as a prisoner somewhere. The most straightforward explanation is that this happens before his body ends up at the stadium.
Of course, there’s also the possibility that some shapeshifting alien weirdness is involved and someone, or something, has taken Hal’s place to mislead John, Kerry, and Guy Gardner.
The trailer also delivers more cosmic material. John comes face-to-face with Sinestro, while Guy Gardner also returns to the story. Those moments suggest the Rushville investigation may be connected to something much larger than the murder mystery that kicked off the season.
We’ll also get a look at Hal’s childhood. That could provide some important context for the man he eventually became and, hopefully, give the series an opportunity to explore at least part of his early history as Green Lantern.
Chandler recently discussed Hal’s actions in Rushville and his conflict with the Manhunter Zoe, played by Poorna Jagannathan, explaining why Hal viewed her presence in the town as a threat rather than some mutually beneficial arrangement.
"I saw the description as not a symbiotic relationship with her in that town. I think of it more parasitically," Chandler said. "The only reason she's doing what she's doing is so she can keep her safety. She's still a threat, and she's still a danger."
He continued: "It's like a really bad guy settling in, saying, 'Hey, I'm gonna hang out here. Don't tell anyone, and until I leave, I'll let you have free dinners,'" the actor continued.
"Once she's gone, she's not gonna care about whether [Rushville's citizens] starve or not. So I say the hell with her, and I'm glad she's gone! As a person, I love Poorna – she's great. But as a character, nah, I could care less [for Zoe]. I did my job."
The series follows new Green Lantern recruit John Stewart and veteran Lantern Hal Jordan as the two intergalactic cops become caught up in a murder investigation in the American heartland. What begins as an Earthbound mystery is now looking increasingly connected to the much larger cosmic world surrounding the Green Lantern Corps.
Alongside Chandler and Pierre, the Lanterns cast includes Kelly Macdonald, Garret Dillahunt, Jagannathan, Nicole Ari Parker, Jason Ritter, J. Alphonse Nicholson, and Jasmine Cephas Jones.
Four episodes of Lanterns are currently streaming on HBO Max, with three episodes remaining. Hal’s arrest, his mysterious imprisonment, Sinestro’s arrival, and all that cosmic activity give the back half of the season plenty to play with.
The biggest question, though, remains Hal Jordan himself. Is the legendary Green Lantern really dead, or is Lanterns hiding another nasty surprise?