HBO launches gritty Green Lantern series "Lanterns" on Aug. 16
The eight-episode series "Lanterns," starring Kyle Chandler and Aaron Pierre as Hal Jordan and John Stewart, premieres on HBO and HBO Max on Aug. 16, 2026, and will air weekly through Oct. 4.
HBO announced that its new Green Lantern drama "Lanterns" will debut on Sunday, Aug. 16, 2026, at 9 p.m. ET/PT. The eight-episode series, which follows veteran space cop Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler) and his protégé John Stewart (Aaron Pierre) as they investigate homicides in the American Midwest, will be broadcast on HBO cable and streamed simultaneously on HBO Max. Episodes are scheduled to air each Sunday night, concluding with the season finale on Oct. 4, 2026.
The show blends hard-boiled detective elements with science-fiction action, featuring alien threats such as shape-shifting Manhunters and a storyline involving the villain Sinestro on a remote prison planet. Production credits include showrunner Chris Mundy, executive producers Damon Lindelof and Tom King, and directors James Hawes, Stephen Williams, Geeta Vasant Patel and Alik Sakharov. The cast also includes Ulrich Thomsen as Sinestro, Nathan Fillion as Guy Gardner, Kelly Macdonald, Garret Dillahunt, Poorna Jagannathan, Laura Linney, Jason Ritter, J. Alphonse Nicholson and Jasmine Cephas Jones.
A teaser released in March and a full trailer in July have highlighted the series' visual effects and the characters' emerald constructs. HBO also made the first five minutes of the premiere episode available online, showing a younger Hal Jordan in a 1996 interview and a backstory for John Stewart.
While HBO and Warner Bros. Television have not confirmed a second season, the writers' room is reportedly assembled and plans for a follow-up are under development, though co-writer Damon Lindelof is not slated to return.