Chandler and Pierre Talk 'Lanterns' Chemistry and Hal–John Feud
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- HBO's 'Lanterns' stars Kyle Chandler as Hal Jordan and Aaron Pierre as John Stewart, with the series set in a small Nebraska town where both characters investigate an alien presence on Earth
- The show takes a 'low-fi' approach in contrast to the sci-fi-heavy 2011 'Green Lantern' film directed by Martin Campbell, focusing on the friction between the two leads rather than cosmic spectacle
- Chandler frames Hal as a flawed, arrogant character with 'pathologies' hidden behind humor, drawing a Shakespearean comparison and saying the role lets him 'make an ass of yourself,' which he called easy in real life
- Pierre cited Sidney Poitier and James Earl Jones as heroes, noting that John Stewart's original comic likeness was based on Poitier, and described his approach as constantly 'revising' and 'excavating' the character through the shoot
- Chandler admitted he knew little about Green Lantern before the role and attended his first Comic-Con during production, calling it 'eye-opening' and 'revelatory'
- Pierre's childhood introduction to DC came through W.H. Smith comic books in London with his late childhood best friend, and he confirmed the casting conversation for John Stewart predated his breakout in 'Rebel Ridge'
Why it matters: HBO and DC are staking a live-action Green Lantern relaunch on the actor chemistry between Chandler and Pierre after the 2011 film flopped, and the show's low-fi, character-driven Nebraska setting signals a deliberate pivot away from cosmic spectacle toward the kind of grounded drama that has powered HBO's other superhero-adjacent hits.
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