An official new look at DC Studios' Lanterns highlighted its leading heroes in a new setting. Following last year's Peacemaker Season 2 and just months after Supergirl glides into theaters in June, DC Studios' next live-action TV show will arrive in August with Lanterns. The first trailer for the grounded, Earth-based take on the DCU's Green Lanterns debuted in March to mixed reactions, since which it has been erased from every official DC and HBO channel (more on that later).
As part of its Summer 2026 TV Preview, ScreenRant unveiled an exclusive new look at DC Studios' Lanterns. The outlet declared that its latest image sees Aaron Pierre's John Stewart and Kyle Chandler's Hal Jordan "having a few drinks in a rural small-town bar while in the middle of their murder investigation" in Sheridan County, Nebraska, which isn't thrilling the locals.
If other Western murder investigation shows are anything to go by, Stewart and Jordan are likely visiting the bar with hopes of getting closer to the locals or extracting information from a small-town bartender.
Hal Jordan may be wearing casual attire in this new look at Lanterns, but the veteran space cop still dons his infamous Emerald jewelry at his barside seat, although the Green Lantern Ring looks different from those shown before.
The 60-year-old Chandler's Emerald Knight may have some flashy bling to wear barside, but the same can't be said for his rookie, John Stewart, who is still vying for his own ring on this investigation in the American heartland.
Lanterns' latest burst of marketing comes at a strange time, in which the trailer (which drew mixed reactions and some key criticisms from DCU fans) has been scrubbed from DC, HBO, and HBO Max's official social channels.
Neither DC Studios nor HBO has explained why Lanterns' trailer, though some have speculated it may involve music licensing issues with the Bruce Springsteen backing track "State Trooper," which was rather fitting for its cop show style.
Others have speculated that DC Studios and HBO are taking the criticisms about Lanterns and its lack of greenery rather seriously. If the DCU series does include that sci-fi comicbookyness and was planning to hide it until release, the studio may look to start marketing afresh, taking criticisms into account.
It's hard to miss that Lanterns' newly-revealed logo and title card not only featured more green coloring than had been seen in the entire marketing campaign so far, but also put the physical Green Lantern Ring at the heart of it all.
Regardless, Lanterns is still scheduled to premiere on HBO and HBO Max in August, and now seems likely to release a brand new first-look-esque teaser trailer soon to replace the deleted sneak peek as marketing continues to heat up.
I'm Convinced That Lanterns Is Hiding Its True Nature For a Very Good Reason
There are clear signs that there is more to Lanterns than meets the eye, with its sci-fi space-cop aspects merely hiding behind this True Detective and Yellowstone-esque drama and Earthbound mystery, possibly to remain a secret until release.
The creator of the DCU series, Chris Mundy, has already discussed how John Stewart and Hal Jordan's Emerald constructs will differ. As none of these superpowers have yet been glimpsed, beyond Jordan briefly flying in the trailer, it already seems likely that DC Studios simply isn't ready to reveal them yet.
Lanterns is also hiding one of its main villains in Ulrich Thomsen's Thaal Sinestro, the founder of the Yellow Lantern Corps, who will reportedly play a key role. Further speculation has also claimed that Atrocitus and the Red Lantern Corps may be involved, indicating that, yes, the series will have an alien presence.
Lanterns' focus will almost certainly be on unraveling a case in small-town Sheridan County, but there is increasing cause to believe more is going on. From the get-go, James Gunn hinted that the two Green Lanterns will investigate a Terrestrial mystery that feeds into the larger DCU, meaning that how these crazier sci-fi elements tie into things is actually a significant spoiler for the show.
