Lanterns Showrunner Says That Episode 1 Surprise Ending Was ‘Big and Scary’ to Commit To

Full spoilers travel for HBO’s Lanterns Episode 1.

The latest installment successful James Gunn and Peter Safran’s DC Universe has kicked disconnected with a bang – literally. Well, astatine slightest we presume determination was a bang erstwhile Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler) was changeable and killed offscreen successful the Lanterns premiere…

That’s right: In the last moments of the archetypal occurrence of Lanterns, the iconic Green Lantern – trial pilot, hero, protector of Sector 2814, founding subordinate of the Justice League (in the comics anyway), and disheveled grumpy grump (in the caller amusement astatine least) – is recovered dead, seemingly changeable successful the head. It’s a startling and, frankly, breathtaking mode to statesman this caller series.

I spoke to showrunner Chris Mundy astir this crook of events, and helium told maine that the determination to termination Hal “was benignant of large and scary.” Mundy, who created the caller amusement on with Damon Lindelof (HBO’s Watchmen) and Eisner-winning comics scribe Tom King, said that the enigma astatine the halfway of the amusement – which has been billed arsenic “True Detective With Superheroes” – needed to beryllium arsenic “meaningful and affectional arsenic possible” for John Stewart (Aaron Pierre), the would-be Green Lantern who is grooming nether Hal.

But not conscionable for John – the Lantern writers besides felt that the decease of Hal would beryllium pivotal to telling that character’s communicative arsenic well. With the amusement jumping backmost and distant betwixt clip periods, we volition of people proceed to spot Chandler arsenic Hal, adjacent if we cognize his eventual endpoint. But successful 2026, erstwhile John sees Hal’s body, helium notices that his aged mentor is nary longer wearing the Green Lantern ring. So what happened to it? “It felt similar [the close happening to do] successful a amusement astir idiosyncratic trying to clasp onto this thing, losing it, and past wherever does helium extremity up and why?” said Mundy. “And tin we bash the mathematics to get to that point? How bash we usage that? Because evidently you don't instrumentality thing similar that lightly.”

Read connected for my afloat chat with Mundy astir Episode 1 of Lanterns!

IGN: At what constituent successful the process did you determine to enactment wrong aggregate timelines to archer the story? In the archetypal occurrence I deliberation we deed 3 antithetic clip periods.

Chris Mundy: Yeah, beauteous overmuch from the jump. We ever knew we were going to bash 2 timelines and that determination were going to beryllium a mates of antithetic mysteries, literal mysteries that we play, and past besides benignant of affectional mysteries. I deliberation erstwhile we'd done that, we felt that determination was a definite state to going backmost successful clip astatine different times too. It's the quality excessively of having a show, of playing a teaser earlier the rubric card. It gives you a small spot of licence to measurement into thing other that's going to deepen things hopefully. And we utilized that a fewer antithetic times implicit the people of the season.

IGN: Because you're acceptable successful this bigger James Gunn universe, were determination ever immoderate times wherever you had to get support successful presumption of the timeline, oregon did helium fto you guys conscionable spell with it?

Chris Mundy: Initially we asked astir that, and helium was conscionable starting to sprout Superman. So we were capable to work that, which was ace helpful. And past determination were nary existent constraints too that, but evidently everybody astatine DC, 1 of our studios, they're speechmaking [our scripts]. If thing would've bumped, that's an casual telephone telephone oregon a text. “Oh, that's bumping up against the plan.” We're partners successful this together.

'Getting Kyle to accidental yes was a immense value disconnected our shoulders due to the fact that Hal could beryllium a spot of an asshole, but Kyle's conscionable not an asshole.'“

IGN: Is it annoying having to interest astir that worldly astatine times though?

Chris Mundy: No, it's conscionable – to beryllium honorable – I assumed stepping into a amusement wrong a beingness similar that, I figured that benignant of worldly would beryllium happening each the time. I thought it would hap a ton and it virtually didn't hap astatine all. So if anything, it was much I felt the bully luck of having nary existent restraints.

IGN: I deliberation that's 1 of the things that's absorbing astir your show. Even though for idiosyncratic similar me, I recognize it's acceptable successful the bigger James Gunn universe, but my woman for illustration astir apt is going to conscionable bask it arsenic an HBO play and not adjacent deliberation astir those things.

Chris Mundy: Exactly. We wanted each of those types of radical to person introduction to the show. That was ace important to us.

IGN: Were determination immoderate concerns astir making Hal benignant of an asshole?

Chris Mundy: Yeah. [laughs] I mean, look, you commencement a amusement and there's concerns astir everything due to the fact that you privation it to beryllium good, you privation radical to similar it, but you besides privation to marque definite that you're doing the astir axenic mentation of it you can. So you don't privation to get wrong your caput excessively overmuch and edit [or] censor yourself. I deliberation getting Kyle to accidental yes was a immense value disconnected our shoulders due to the fact that Hal could beryllium a spot of an asshole, but Kyle's conscionable not an asshole. So you could constitute it up present and helium delivers it and it'd beryllium funny, but it inactive plays down present due to the fact that he's truthful charming. I'd similar to accidental that was thing to bash with america oregon our skill, and it's similar 0% america and 100% Kyle.

John Stewart (Aaron Pierre) and Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler)

IGN: Yeah, it's Coach, right?

Chris Mundy: Exactly. It's like, "Come on, he's coaching!"

IGN: Killing disconnected Hal – evidently that's a large deal. Can you archer maine a small spot astir your thought process connected however you landed connected that idea?

Chris Mundy: We needed immoderate that enigma was to beryllium arsenic meaningful arsenic imaginable and arsenic affectional arsenic imaginable for John, for Hal successful a way, but besides for the audience. So it felt similar [the close happening to do] successful a amusement astir idiosyncratic trying to clasp onto this thing, losing it, and past wherever does helium extremity up and why? And tin we bash the mathematics to get to that point? How bash we usage that? Because evidently you don't instrumentality thing similar that lightly. It's a immense thing. So is it being done to illuminate not conscionable John, but besides illuminate Hal successful the champion mode possible? So the information that they had assurance or, really, religion successful america astatine slightest to bash it and dainty it with the level of attraction that we hopefully gave it, we felt truly lucky. But yeah, it was benignant of large and scary conscionable due to the fact that it's a choice.

Check backmost astatine IGN each week for the latest connected Lanterns!

This interrogation has been edited for magnitude and clarity.

Talk to Scott Collura @scottcollura.bsky.social, oregon perceive to his Star Trek podcast, Transporter Room 3. Or bash both!