Ryan Gosling, Miles Teller, and Glen Powell as Green Lantern (Image via Sportskeeda)

DCU Lanterns: 7 Actors who could play Hal Jordan Green Lantern

Modified Feb 07, 2023 18:26 IST

James Gunn recently announced his DCU slate for the upcoming months and the Green Lantern-centric series, Lanterns, turned out to be one of its most exciting projects, which is described as a true detective-style gritty thriller. It features Hal Jordan and Jon Stewart as two Green Lanterns of the Green Lantern Corps, solving a spine-chilling mystery in their space precinct, Earth.

The series is in its early stages of development, so the actors playing both Hal Jordan and Jon Stewart are far from being finalized. James Gunn mentioned that the DCU castings won't happen until the projects are written. So, it'll be a while before any actors are picked.

But before the official casting happens, here are some actors who could potentially play Hal Jordan in HBO Max’s upcoming series, Lanterns.

Disclaimer: This article purely reflects the author's views, which may be subjective in nature.

From Chris Pine to Ryan Gosling, 7 actors who could play Hal Jordan 'Green Lantern' in upcoming Lantern series

1) Glenn Powell

Glen Powell as Hal Jordan (Image via DC)

The 34-year-old actor is a rising star in Hollywood who has done some pretty good work till now. From the time he appeared on The Dark Knight Rises to starring in The Expendables 3, viewers have witnessed the actor in supporting roles till now. But 2022 turned out to be his most successful year as he played Hangman in Top Gun: Maverick and starred as a fighter pilot in Sony’s Devotion.

Viewers would love it if he plays yet another pilot who goes on to become the Green Lantern of the DC Universe. He has the perfect face, physique, and acting chops for Hal Jordan. In fact, those who have seen Devotion would agree that he and Jonathan Majors would be great for both Hal Jordan and John Stewart.

But that cannot happen for Majors as he’ll be super busy playing Kang the Conqueror until 2026. So for now, we should just look at Powell for Hal Jordan.

2) Joseph Gordon-Levitt

Joseph Gordon-Levitt in The Dark Knight Rises (Image via DC)

The 41-year-old actor is popularly known for his roles in Looper, The Dark Knight Rises, Inception, The Trial of the Chicago 7, and several other hits. But in the last few years, we have only seen him play supporting roles in mediocre successes such as Project Power, Pinocchio, and others.

With so much industry experience, he has what it takes to become Hal Jordan; Joseph Gordon-Levitt could possibly rebrand his career by becoming one of the Green Lanterns in DCU’s upcoming sci-fi thriller series on HBO Max.

3) Chris Pine

Chris Pine as Green Lantern (Image via DC)

Back when Wonder Woman 1984 was in development, a lot of rumors suggested that DCEU’s Steve Trevor could be turned into a Green Lantern. While that isn’t happening, one cannot deny the fact that Chris Pine would look absolutely stunning in the role of Green Lantern.

The 42-year-old is someone who doesn’t need to prove how great an actor he is; so, he should certainly be eyed to play Hal Jordan. Being in his early 40s, his version of Green Lantern will be in play for a while, and he could then recruit a young John Stewart to be his partner.

4) Miles Teller

Miles Teller in Top Gun: Maverick (Image via Paramount)

Here’s another actor who has been working hard to get into the A-listers space. He proved his worth in Whiplash, but then his stint as Reed Richards did not appeal to viewers. However, 2022 was perhaps the greatest year of his career.

His performance in Top Gun: Maverick was praised on a global scale as the film became the second-highest grosser of 2022; he then also played the leading man in Spiderhead on Netflix. Hence, Miles Teller could really prove to be a cool candidate for Hal Jordan. He is just aged 35 years, so he could carry the role forward for at least a decade.

5) Ryan Gosling

Ryan Gosling in The Gray Man (Image via Netflix)

Green Lantern will just be trading 'Ryans' if this ends up happening. Reynolds may not want to return as Hal Jordan, now that he is busy playing Deadpool and several other roles, so why not Gosling instead?

The 42-year-old actor could be an amazing fit; he hasn’t even made his entry into the superhero space yet, so he’d be a pretty fresh face for the fans to follow. With a lean physique like Glen Powell, he could also be the ideal choice for Hal Jordan.

6) Charlie Hunnam

Charlie Hunnam in Shantaram (Image via Apple TV+)

Many fans believe that it’s about time Charlie Hunnam got a good comic book role. People wanted him to play Green Arrow in the DCEU. He could be a great Hal Jordan as well, since he's been proving his worth in TV shows like Sons of Anarchy and Shantaram.

Along with that, the 42-year-old also played a few substantial roles in films like The Gentleman and Pacific Rim. So, both Marvel and DC should look at him for potential roles and Green Lantern could be one of them.

7) James Marsden

James Marsden as Cyclops (Image via 20th Century Studios)

Marsden isn’t a new name for the superhero space. He was Cyclops in the original X-Men trilogy. He then switched to DC playing Lois Lane’s husband in Superman Returns. Even though his career took a dip after that, he has certainly picked himself up with Westworld and Sonic The Hedgehog.

He is 49 years old right now, so maybe he could come in as an older version of Hal Jordan, who is close to his retirement age. And he can then recruit a young John Stewart to possibly carry the mantle forward.

But before retiring, they could solve a gripping mystery together in the upcoming Lanterns series. He could then become the fall guy in DCU Chapter 1’s Justice League crossover movie.

Edited by
Abhipsa Choudhury