Green Lantern's character design in his cut cameo from Zack Snyder's Justice League has been fully revealed. Following the release of Justice League in 2017, fans quickly called out how different it was from the movie director Zack Snyder intended to make. This was due to him departing the project mid-production, Joss Whedon overseeing extensive reshoots, and Warner Bros. heavily altering the final product. It didn't take long for a fan campaign to begin asking Warner Bros. to #ReleaseTheSnyderCut. Despite the uphill battle seemingly facing the movie, supporters got their wish three years later when Zack Snyder's Justice League debuted on HBO Max in March 2021.
While Zack Snyder's Justice League is essentially the movie the director always hoped to make (with additions like the Knightmare sequences and Jared Leto's Joker), there was one idea that he wasn't allowed to include: Green Lantern. John Stewart was originally meant to appear at the end of Zack Snyder's Justice League instead of Martian Manhunter. Snyder went as far as to cast Wayne T. Carr to play the DC superhero and film the scene in his driveway during the lockdown. However, Warner Bros. requested this be removed due to their own plans for a Green Lantern franchise and John Stewart.
Snyder may have cut Green Lantern's cameo from Zack Snyder's Justice League, but that didn't stop him from teasing his role. The director previously offered a glimpse of a low-quality photo of Carr's Green Lantern in the post-release promotional tour for Justice League in May 2021. Now, to celebrate the one-year anniversary of Zack Snyder's Justice League releasing on HBO Max, the first clear look at the character is finally here. Carr tweeted out the final design for his cut Green Lantern cameo, which is the closest thing yet to an official look at how John Stewart would've appeared like in the movie.
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In Snyder's original plans for Justice League, Carr's Green Lantern would've been the one to appear to Bruce Wayne to warn him about Darkseid's coming war. This was meant to be the beginning of a major role for the Green Lanterns in Snyder's Justice League trilogy. Hal Jordan was meant to play a major role in the sequels originally as he's on a search for his partner, presumably John Stewart. Since Snyder removed Justice League's Green Lantern cameo at Warner Bros.' request, the only role the Green Lantern Corps play in the movie is through the history lesson and Knightmare flashes.
Since Zack Snyder's Justice League didn't feature Carr's Green Lantern, the actor is understandably joining the legions of fans asking WB to #RestoreTheSnyderVerse. He conceivably could return for Justice League 2 & 3 if they were ever to happen. Even though the studio has shown a willingness to explore multiple universes and bring individual directors' visions to life, there is still no real movement on the SnyderVerse being restored. DC seems comfortable going in a different direction, while Snyder is making new franchises for Netflix. Unless Zack Snyder's Justice League inspires another groundswell of demands for more content, it seems this Green Lantern cameo will always be a case of what could've been.
Source: Wayne T. Carr