Ryan Reynolds Open to Green Lantern Cameo in HBO’s Lanterns Series
- Ryan Reynolds expressed enthusiasm for making a cameo appearance in HBO's series Lanterns, fifteen years after starring in the 2011 feature film Green Lantern, according to interviews and...
- Speaking with Entertainment Tonight during the premiere of his film Mayday, Reynolds was asked if fans might see him appear in the new HBO Max DC series.
- The 2011 Green Lantern film opened in June 2011 and finished with $219.9 million worldwide against a reported $200 million budget, prompting Warner Bros.
Ryan Reynolds expressed enthusiasm for making a cameo appearance in HBO’s series Lanterns, fifteen years after starring in the 2011 feature film Green Lantern, according to interviews and reporting from Entertainment Tonight and Cosmic Book News. The actor addressed the possibility during a press appearance in New York, offering a lighthearted willingness to rejoin the comic book franchise despite years of self-deprecating jokes at the movie’s expense.
Ryan Reynolds Addresses Potential Lanterns Cameo
Speaking with Entertainment Tonight during the premiere of his film Mayday, Reynolds was asked if fans might see him appear in the new HBO Max DC series. I would totally do a cameo in that. I love it. I mean that,
Reynolds said, as reported by Cosmic Book News.
The actor expanded on his relationship with the 2011 Warner Bros. film, which struggled commercially and critically. You know, I learned so much making that movie. And I know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking, oh, learn what not to do. In part, yes,
Reynolds said, according to Cosmic Book News. But also, anytime you make something that large, there are core lessons that come of it, and I owe my entire career to that movie.
Production Context and Franchise Evolution
The 2011 Green Lantern film opened in June 2011 and finished with $219.9 million worldwide against a reported $200 million budget, prompting Warner Bros. to shelve the sequel. In the years following, Reynolds turned the project into a running gag, most notably in a post-credits scene in Deadpool 2 where the character shoots a younger Reynolds holding the Green Lantern script. HBO’s Lanterns series adopts a different approach to the source material. The show stars Kyle Chandler as Hal Jordan and Aaron Pierre as John Stewart, following the two as they investigate a murder in the American heartland. The series forms a central part of James Gunn and Peter Safran’s growing DC Universe. Because Chandler now plays Hal Jordan in the main continuity, any potential appearance by Reynolds would likely occupy a separate space or require a second season. Cosmic Book News notes that a second season has not yet received a green light from HBO Max.
Prior Rumors and Director Considerations
This marks the second time Reynolds has publicly addressed the appeal of returning to the character. In 2021, internet rumors suggested he might appear as Hal Jordan in Zack Snyder’s Justice League. While Reynolds denied direct involvement at the time on social media, writing that it was not me,
he added, what a cool pirate flag to cameo as Hal.
Director Zack Snyder later confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter that he genuinely considered bringing Reynolds back alongside another Lantern to expand the Green Lantern Corps, describing Reynolds as a supportive sport about the concept.