First Look at James Gunn's Green Lantern Villain Actor on Set

Paul Ben-Victor recently shared a photo of himself on the set of Lanterns.

By Nathan Johnson Posted:
James Gunn, Green Lantern logo

One of Lanterns' recurring actors, who is expected to bring the project's major antagonist to life, recently shared a photo of himself on the HBO series' set. Lanterns is one project in James Gunn's DCU that is quite far along in the development process, releasing sometime in 2026. Not much is known about the specifics of the project's story, but Gunn did recently confirm which of the Green Lanterns will be the outright main character in the show.

Tenured actor and DCU newcomer Paul Ben-Victor recently shared a photo of himself on the set of Lanterns getting his body scanned for his role in the upcoming HBO (and HBO Max) series. The photo simply featured the actor in a room with a lot of lights and cameras, which were all being used to scan his body for VFX.

Paul Ben-Victor on Lanterns set
Instagram

Ben-Victor, who recently appeared in The Chosen Season 5, shared the photo of himself via Instagram. Accompanying the image was a caption that simply read, "Lights on," making sure not to give away any details about his mysterious Lanterns role.

Ben-Victor was first announced as a Lanterns cast member in April 2025. The name of his character has not been revealed, but he is working under the code name "Antaan." Based on his character description, many believe that he will portray Atrocitus.

For reference, when Ben-Victor was announced as part of the Lanterns cast by Deadline, the outlet also reported that his character would be "an extraterrestrial devoted to exposing the truth and exacting revenge on those who wronged his people:"

"Ben-Victor will play Antaan, an extraterrestrial devoted to exposing the truth and exacting vengeance against those who wronged his people. Consumed by a deep and unrelenting hatred for the law, he is determined to deliver justice on his own terms."

The actor's recently shared photo only adds fuel to the rumors that he will be playing Atrocitus, as he would be an extremely CGI-heavy character.

Lanterns will also star Aaron Pierre and Kyle Chandler as Green Lanterns John Stewart and Hal Jordan. Those two, along with Nathan Fillion's Guy Gardner (who was featured prominently in Superman), will be exploring a series of murders in America.

Is Paul Ben-Victor Playing Atrocitus?

Atrocitus in DC Comics
DC Comics

As mentioned, the description that was given for Paul Ben-Victor's character sounds quite similar to Atrocitus's backstory in DC comics.

For reference, Atrocitus had to witness the death of his wife and children, and was one of only five beings in Space Sector 666 to survive after an attack by the Manhunters. 

Atrocitus (who was then known as Atros) swore to destroy the Guardians of the Universe and all connected to them. Eventually, Atrocitus founded the Red Lantern Corps and created red power rings. The foundation of the Red Lantern Corps was hate, which Atrocitus had a lot of, as did anyone else who joined him.

If Ben-Victor does turn out to play Atrocitus, it could bring events like the Blackest Night into the DCU. It could also finally allow other Lantern Corps to be fully explored in live-action.

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- About The Author: Nathan Johnson
Nathan is a writer at The Direct where he covers Star Wars, the MCU, and DC news. He joined The Direct in April 2021 and currently writes news and feature articles about all three brands mentioned above, but his main specialty is his knowledge about anything and everything Star Wars.