The first trailer for Lanterns arrived earlier today, and fans either seem to love or hate what they're seeing. Some appreciate the True Detective-inspired approach, while others are bemoaning the fact that the show couldn't be any further from an epic space opera.
Ultimately, we'll have to wait and see. Lanterns could still surprise us, and this is just a first trailer. However, it's hard to shake the feeling that DC Studios has made a major miscalculation here.
Superhero and superpowered action in the trailer may have been limited, but it ends by confirming that the DCU is home to at least one of the Green Lantern Corps' weirdest, most beloved members: Ch'p.
"Have you ever talked with the other Lanterns?" John Stewart asks Hal Jordan. The veteran hero then replies, "I'm the only human. They're aliens. One of them's a f***ing squirrel."
On the one hand, this seems to suggest that Hal hasn't really spent any significant amount of time with the non-human Green Lanterns. On the other, this at least opens the door to us seeing the cosmic side of the franchise, either elsewhere in this tale or in whatever follows.
In the comics, Ch'p is a member of the Green Lantern Corps, serving as the protector of Sector 1014. He is a H'lvenite, an extraterrestrial species from the planet H'lven, and physically resembles an anthropomorphic squirrel or chipmunk
Ch'p first appeared in 1982's Green Lantern Vol. 2 #148, and was created by Paul Kupperberg and Don Newton. As a young resistance leader on H'lven, he defended his world against an invasion by the Crabster Army led by Doctor Ub'x.
After the prior Green Lantern of the sector was killed, Ch'p was captured and sentenced to death, but a Guardian of the Universe secretly inducted him into the Corps, granting him the power ring of his predecessor. He underwent training alongside Hal Jordan under Kilowog and participated in major Corps events, including battles against Doctor Ub'x, the Anti-Green Lantern Corps on Qward, and the entity Maaldor.
When David Corenswet's Man of Steel was spotted seemingly talking to a squirrel on the set of Superman, it was theorised that Ch'p might debut there, alongside Gut Gardner. Unfortunately, that was just a regular squirrel who needed saving from Lex Luthor's rampaging Kaiju.
Lanterns follows new recruit John Stewart and Lantern legend Hal Jordan, two intergalactic cops drawn into a dark, earth-based mystery as they investigate a murder in the American heartland.
Chris Mundy (True Detective: Night Country) is serving as showrunner and executive producer and will write Lanterns with Damon Lindelof (Watchmen) and comic book scribe Tom King (Supergirl). The cast includes Aaron Pierre as John Stewart, Kyle Chandler as Hal Jordan, and Ulrich Thomsen as Sinestro.
Kelly Macdonald, Garret Dillahunt, Poorna Jagannathan, Nicole Ari Parker, Jason Ritter, J. Alphonse Nicholson, and Jasmine Cephas Jones round out the cast.
Lanterns is set to premiere on HBO in 2026.