James Gunn Reveals Lanterns Release Date on HBO Max

James Gunn's reboot of the DCU is just beginning. From last year's success with Superman (2025) to this year's upcoming Supergirl: Girl of Tomorrow (2026) release, the DCU has been heavily promoting the film side of the franchise. However, television series like Creature Commandos, Peacemaker, and the upcoming Lanterns (2026) show that the DCU will cover disparate stories across the franchise, bringing different tones and showing different sides of a world where superheroes are common place.

Recently, fans were concerned when the trailer for Lanterns was removed from YouTube, but the reason why is now apparent. The release date for the series has now been added to the trailer. Fans of the Green Lantern Corps should look forward to August 16, 2026 as the day when they finally get to see Kyle Chandler's Hal Jordan and Aaron Pierre's John Stewart work together to protect Earth, both from local threats and from intergalactic enemies.

The Lanterns' Trailer Shows Another Side of the New DCU

While Superman (2026) was bright and filled with the optimism of Clark Kent, Lanterns promises to be a far more gritty show. In fact, the trailer looks far more like it's for a police procedural rather than a superhero movie. Set in what is presumably Texas, Hal Jordan works on his unconventional training of Jon Stewart, who is impatient to begin working with the ring. However, besides a few shots of the ring, the lantern, and the costume, there is very little green throughout the trailer, making the appearance of green far more significant.

While this trailer does not highlight the Lantern Corps' intergalactic presence, the Corps will still play a key role in the Lanterns code and story. With the DCU setting up its universe at large, the Lanterns can provide new avenues to explore stories and dangers throughout the galaxy and beyond, especially since a Green Lantern's sector usually focuses on solar systems, not just singular planets. In fact, some fans speculate that the murder at the center of Lanterns could be setting up Blackest Night, one of DC Comics' biggest crossover events.

The trailer also sets up the conflict between Hal Jordan and John Stewart nicely. Hal Jordan is more old school and used to working on his own, as shown by his implications that he does not really talk with his fellow lanterns. This seems to include Nathan Fillion's Guy Gardner, who appeared in Superman (2025). In contrast to Hal, Jon Stewart is much younger and believes that he is far more focused on protecting people with his powers. He's impatient to start and believes that he could do better than Hal, who he views as old and tired. Even though they seem at odds in the trailer, their adventure will likely lead to them finding common ground as they uncover a new threat to Earth.

Lanterns premieres on HBO Max on August 16, 2026.