With casting for the JLA film rumored to be well under way, news has leaked to suggest the superhero team will be graced with the presence of a Green Lantern - contrary to reports from a few days ago - but that the character will likely be John Stewart. While not officially confirmed, the report derives from casting information in which one black actor is called for, among primarily caucasian males. So, the question is, is this good or bad news? Is a third-tier, supporting Lantern better than no Lantern at all? Could Stewart be the rumored team member to die by the film’s finale, leading to a juicier stand-alone Green Lantern film in the future? For once, I’m open to almost anything.
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Equal to Iron Man and more than any other superhero property, I’ve been dreaming of big screen Green Lantern for years. As rumors came and went regarding a Jack Black comedy, typing ‘greenlanternmovie.com’ continued to link to the Warner Bros. website and a one-on-one discussion with Geoff Johns gave me hope that a Hal Jordan-Parallax-Kyle Rayner trilogy may have been tossed around, there was always this sense that the character was to remain in development hell for eternity. Even worse, I feared the classic story of Hal Jordan would be disregarded in place of John Stewart who - in my eyes - simply isn’t that interesting. Sure, he has the destruction of an entire planet on his conscience… but he’ll just never rise above being a supporting character for me.
Having said that, perhaps Stewart’s possible inclusion in an ensemble is a blessing in disguise. It allows the studio to do a test run on the Green Lantern mythology but needn’t blemish the potential for a full-blown feature film - one which I see as Top Gun meets Superman but with some of the coolest effects ever put to film. With Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman vying for screen time - not to mention the comedic appeal of The Flash - it’s a safe bet Green Lantern would be sidelined to some extent anyway, so maybe it’s best we don’t care and just revel in the eye candy.
Either way, I’m just glad a GL may appear on screen. Following news the JLA would comprise of just five heroes - the core three plus The Flash and Aquaman - I’d almost take Guy Gardner at this stage. Besides, who needs Aquaman? Seriously…?
Source: ComicBookMovie.com
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21 Comments
John Stewart is miles above Guy Gardner. Anyways, after JLU, he grew on me. Still, it seems that most people are going to wonder when GL turned black. As long as there are constructs, I am happy.
Kane I know you read the comic, but my more recent knowledge of Green Lantern comes from the animated Justice League series, and within that context I think your idea for how the character fits in to this film vs a standalone movie may be on the mark.
And Aquaman? Yeah, I agree with you.
Vic
Chip, I agree re. Guy Gardner… he’d be a worse choice than even the most random alien GL, in my opinion.
And, Vic… strangely enough, I’ve only really seen the JLA feature John Stewart too, since I only watch the cartoon. Thing is… I just found him so unlikable through the entire series. He’s got no depth and almost too much willpower (or discipline, at least) that it’s a non-event. With Hal, you get a flawed character who struggles between his will and emotions on a daily basis.
I guess… the more I think about it… perhaps John Stewart is the best choice, after all. I just hope they work on making him a likeable enough character that audiences will be interested in Green Lantern lore.
If anyone dies in the movie isn’t The Flash the most likely candidate?
Why, Brian? Because it’s happened in the comics…? I don’t think that’s going to have any impact on the film.
Just take a look at what Fox did to Cyclops in X3 - it’s all about who studios deem the most accessible and likeable characters. Or, worse, who they get to play them.
OMG! I can’t believe this is even an issue! It should be Hal all the way! As a reader of the GL and JLA comix (I watched the cartoons too),I strongly believe he would work best as GL. I like Stewart,personally and all,but he and those second-tier GLs are just Green Lanterns. Hal IS Green Lantern. Besides,most people who’ve heard of GL are familiar with Hal,and to use Stewart (this is what most people’s perception of Stewart will be,not mine,FYI) is going to surprize them,they’ll be like “isn’t GL a white guy?”. See what I’m sayin’? But if they use John,and they probably will (to be all PC an’ all),they should at show some flashbax of Hal or at least mention him.
Oh,and give me ANY GL over Aquaman anyday.
There’s just so much more story with Hal,guys. Besides,he was the first GL to join the League,not to mention he’s the most popular and best GL. I guess another reason for choosing Stewart would be because of the cartoons,they see what’s worked before and are hoping it will work for their film.
- Su iTunes hanno messo in vendita Hotel Chevalier, un cortometraggio di 17 minuti diretto da Wes Anderson. Una specie di prequel a The Darjeeling Limited, in cui recitano Jason Schartzman e Natalie Portman (foto sopra). Quest’ultima, peraltro, pare…
Kane, I know, but i still think they’d pick him because it would be at least sorta similar to the comics.
And keep in mind that it’s only assumed that Cyclops died in X3.
I here that Lawrence Fishburne was the idol pick for this film.
If it’s because they want a minority in the JLA who’s a familiar face,then they could always make Martian Manhunter’s alter ego black. Think about it,he has many alter egos,John Jones the detective is just the most prominent.
If it’s because they want a minority in the JLA who’s a familiar face,then they could always make Martian Manhunter’s alter ego black. Think about it,he has many alter egos,John Jones the detective is just the most prominent.
I think that if they use Hal Jordan they should cast Casey Affleck as him. Casey affleck could also be credible as the Atom (Ray Palmer) or Hawkman (Carter Hal).
Maybe they’ll have Doug Jones play Martian Manhunter,he’s played lots of movie mansters and aliens,including the Silver Surfer FYI.
And who knows,if they really are going to use John Stewart for GL,maybe they’ll cast Phil Lamarr as him!
Kel… you’re definitely right about Hal having a much deeper story. We all know that. The more I think about it, though, the more I think it could be a big mistake to have Hal in this film for that very same reason.
Does anyone seriously think we’ll get any real story out of a Green Lantern in this JLA film anyway? He’ll likely be a Cyclops in X2 at best or a Colossus in X3 at worst. The film will undoubtedly focus on Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman… so why waste a great character like Hal Jordan in a supporting role?
We’ve been patient this long… so wouldn’t you rather keep waiting for them to make Hal’s screen debut something amazing?
As for Cyclops potentially being alive by the end of X3, Brian… okay. Maybe. But not in the world of good screenwriting or marketing, he wouldn’t be. Since X3’s script was a complete shambles, I’m not completely opposed to them trying to fix it in a sequel (read: pretty much ignoring the film and redoing it) BUT - short of some extremely clever flashback scenes to Alkali Lake - any return of Cyclops is going to feel as cheap and tacky as most horror sequels of the 1980s. Keep in mind that they marketed the film as the final in a trilogy and showed Cyclops’ grave in the closing moments. In storytelling language, that is pretty clear-cut. The problems only arise when people stop caring about what’s onscreen and make up little fanboy, comic-style plots (ala 24’s return of Tony Almeida and the survival of Boba Fett in the Star Wars expanded universe). It cheapens the reality of the worlds we’re trying to believe in.
I thought it was pretty clear that they were leaving it open for him to make a return. Nobody found it even a little suspicious that you no one in the movie ever confirms he’s dead?
That has more to do with the fact - admitted by the writers - that they had to literally beg the studio to even let them feature Cyclops in the film in the first place. They knew the importance of his character in the Phoenix storyline… but the studio essentially said ‘fine… but kill him early’.
The only reason nobody in the film actually confirms his death… and they go about the film as though little more than an awkward fart had occurred… is because the removal of Cyclops was simply not deemed important. It’s studio politics, pure and simple. They wanted a Hugh Jackman plot once again and they got it.
Everyone related to the film’s production says Cyclops is dead.
Perhaps that’s what they intended, but it’s certainly not what comes across. Everyone i’ve talked to was convinced he was still alive somewhere.
Agree to disagree then…?
I just think you’re confusing a film trilogy that began with a certain level of reality with a television series or dumb horror franchise.
Don’t get me wrong, though… I totally think Cyclops will return. I just don’t believe that was ever the intention. It will simply be a business decision based on fanboy wet dreams and a narrative hole the writers will need to cleverly write their way out of.
Then again, who cares anymore? With ‘X3′, I went from a major ‘X-Men’ film fan to pretty much indifferent about the whole thing… and trust me when I say I was the one really rooting for Ratner, Kinberg and Penn up until opening day.
Good points there,Heath. While I at first cringe at the thought of having anyone else be GL other than Hal,the more I think about it,the better the idea of using John instead sounds,especially if GL’s appearance in this film will be the equivelant of Beasts’s from X3. So,I guess I’d be cool if it they used either of them. Just If they use John,I want them to reference Hal in some way,either verbally or in a brief flashback of John’s origin (when Hal made him a GL). Still vouching for Hal tho,but now that you’ve mentioned that,I’m more comfortable with the idea of them using John. Many Thanx.
Doh! I’m sorry,Kane,I thought you were Heath!! SOO SORRY ABOUT THAT! My bad,guys.
So,that’d be thank YOU Kane. My bad.
I think Roger R. Cross should be John Stewart
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