Lanterns Showrunner Admits To Mistake In Episode 7's Manhunter Noah Scene: "He's Not Getting Any Protection"

Lanterns Episode 8 made a mistake with one scene involving Shea Pritchard's Noah Macon, and the showrunner has owned up to it. The series' central mystery revolved around the death of Kyle Chandler's Hal Jordan and a powerful threat known as the Manhunters. Noah's grandmother, Zoe Macon, played by Poorna Jagannathan, was unmasked as a Manhunter in Episode 4, and as the story unfolded, Noah was revealed to be one as well, a twist that came full circle in the finale's football scenes. 

Chris Mundy, showrunner of HBO's Lanterns, addressed the error on The Midnight Boys podcast while discussing the finale. Fans had immediately noticed that the offensive line for Noah's Rushville Pioneers included some very small players, an odd sight in an American football game. Mundy owned the mistake, revealing that "one kid was like 5’9," which is quite small for an offensive line player:

"Oh my god… So all I can say about that is… I mean, it's lucky he's a Manhunter ‘cause with that O-line, he's not getting any protection… I wasn't on set that day. I will just say it's unfair to our incredibly talented lovely Russian director, who I don't think has ever watched a minute of American football. When they put the extras out, one kid was like 5’9, 130 and he's like… It was what number 29 and number 40, I was just like, ‘Oh s***.’ And you can't really cut around it. I'm just like, he's scrambling for his life. I feel pretty good that we didn't mess too many things up, but it's so funny you said that, ‘cause we've been talking about that internally forever in the editing room. I'm just like, ‘Oh god.’" 

The Rushville Pioneers team was unveiled in the penultimate episode, where Noah insisted he would not hold his hat ceremony without his offensive line. Stu Staley, Jack Kavinsky, Colby Hall, Josh Preston, and Jim Manley joined him on stage at the high school ceremony as the men charged with protecting the Pioneers' quarterback. Their small stature was glaring, and the jersey numbers were another error, with the linemen wearing 29, 40, 21, and the like. 

In American football, offensive linemen wear numbers from 50 to 79, a rule that holds even at the high school level. The numbers the Lanterns linemen wore typically belong to defensive backs, linebackers, and running backs. Size is extremely important on the O-line, too, since its job is to protect the quarterback and open lanes for the running back, serving as a human shield against the opposing defense. 

In the finale, the opposition's linemen were noticeably larger than Rushville's, and it was a miracle they won. As Mundy joked, Noah being a superhuman Manhunter goes a long way toward explaining that. Real-life Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule even made a surprise cameo as himself, walking onto the field after the game to hand Noah a Cornhuskers cap. 

Did the Lanterns Football Error Leave a Dent in the Show's Quality? 

Football is a big part of Lanterns' identity, established right from the jump. The series premiere introduced its first mystery on the Rushville football field, where a shooting disrupted a game. That scene underlined how much the sport means to the town, a rare source of entertainment in a quiet community. Noah's rise as a football phenomenon was also foreshadowed in that first episode, when Aaron Pierre's John Stewart offered one key piece of advice that instantly improved his throwing motion. 

With Lanterns establishing how central football is to the community, getting details like the jersey numbers and the size of the O-line right was essential. Rhule's cameo alone shows how seriously the show takes the sport, which makes it all the more surprising that no one caught those details before filming. Does it leave a dent in Lanterns' quality, though? Some would argue no, since most viewers would likely not notice. There's also the argument that a small town like Rushville would simply make do with the players it had. 

Noah, being a Manhunter, is also a decent excuse for needing little protection. The jersey numbers, though, are indefensible. Beyond the football mishap, Lanterns Season 1 was largely entertaining and did an impressive job of introducing John Stewart as the DCU's main Lantern for Earth, albeit one who operates as an independent contractor. His personalized oath also drew mixed reactions, even though Lanterns writing their own oaths is quite common in the comics. John will make his theatrical DCU debut in James Gunn's Superman sequel, Man of Tomorrow, when it hits theaters on July 9, 2027, and could return in Lanterns Season 2 if DC Studios and Warner Bros. greenlight it.