According to Deadline, actor Finn Wittrock as been cast as Guy Gardner in the upcoming Green Lantern live-action series on HBO Max.
First announced during during the initial HBO Max catalogue rollout, the Green Lantern series will be helmed by executive producers and writers Seth Grahame-Smith and Marc Guggenheim and will be putting the limelight on the members of the Green Lantern Corps besides Hal Jordan such as Gardner, Jessica Cruz, Simon Baz, Sinestro, Killowog and Alan Scott.
Green Lantern of Earth and notable Batman punch receiver Guy Gardner was first introduced in Green Lantern #59 as an admittedly bland character, apparently the Guardians’ first choice for Abin Sur’s GL ring. It wasn’t until the ’80s when comic creators Steve Englehart and Joe Staton revived and reinvented Gardner as the brash, hot-headed, ultra-macho stereotype of a classic red-blooded male that he has continued to be to this day. Despite his obnoxious and at times sexist personality, Guy has proven himself to be an honorable member of the GLC and remains a fan-favorite character.
Finn Wittrock has risen to prominence as an unofficial Ryan Murphy Player, appearing on Murphy-helmed shows including American Horror Story, American Crime Story, and Ratched. As noted by Deadline, Wittrock won’t be the first to portray Guy Gardner in live-action. Actor Matthew Settle played a version of Guy Gardner in the infamous 1997 CBS Justice League of America pilot.
Fans can look forward to more Green Lantern casting announcements as development of the HBO Max series continues.
From DC and HBO Max and Berlanti Productions comes a bold adaptation of the iconic comic book franchise: A saga spanning decades and galaxies. GREEN LANTERN will depict the adventures of a multitude of Lanterns, including Guy Gardner, Jessica Cruz, Simon Baz and Alan Scott—Earth’s first Green Lantern, who, true to the comics, is a gay man—and many more. The series will also include fan favorites such as Sinestro and Killowog, as well as introduce new heroes to the ranks of the Green Lantern Corps.
Green Lantern comes from executive producers and writers Seth Grahame-Smith, who will serve as showrunner, and Marc Guggenheim, along with executive producers Greg Berlanti, Geoff Johns, Sarah Schechter and David Madden. Many of these names should be familiar to DCTV fans, as Berlanti has overseen most of DC’s recent small screen offerings, including The CW’s beloved “Arrowverse,” as well as recent streaming hits Titans, Stargirl and Doom Patrol. Guggenheim and Schechter have both played key roles in many of those shows, including Arrow, DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, Supergirl and Batwoman, among others. Guggenheim also co-wrote the 2011 Ryan Reynold’s Green Lantern movie along with Berlanti, Michael Green and Michael Goldenberg.
Green Lantern is the latest high profile DCTV series to be developed for HBO Max, coming on the heels of the recent announcements of Peacemaker, a James Gunn-written spinoff set in the universe of his 2021 movie The Suicide Squad, as well as an untitled Gotham City Police Department series from Matt Reeves and Boardwalk Empire’s Terrence Winter set in the universe of Reeve’s upcoming The Batman. All three shows will live on HBO Max alongside prior DC Universe shows like Doom Patrol, Harley Quinn and Titans, and previously aired network shows like Batwoman.
