![‘Lanterns’ Trailer: Kyle Chandler & Aaron Pierre Bring DC’s Cosmic Murder Mystery Down To Earth [Comic-Con]](https://cdn.theplaylist.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/23115353/kyle-chandler-aaron-pierre-lanterns-072026-1-3baf984ca40e4256b982d4ca4373a515.jpg "‘Lanterns’ Trailer: Kyle Chandler & Aaron Pierre Bring DC’s Cosmic Murder Mystery Down To Earth [Comic-Con]")
Comic-Con is usually built for capes, costumes, and universe-shaking spectacle, but HBO used the convention to introduce something considerably murkier. The official trailer for DC Studios’ “Lanterns” premiered during San Diego Comic-Con, bringing Kyle Chandler’s Hal Jordan and Aaron Pierre’s John Stewart to the convention with an Earthbound murder investigation that could have consequences stretching far beyond the planet.
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The eight-episode series follows Stewart, a newly recruited Green Lantern, and Jordan, a veteran Lantern assigned to work alongside him. The two intergalactic cops are drawn into a dark mystery after investigating a murder in the American heartland, combining the vast mythology of the Green Lantern Corps with the structure of a grounded detective drama.
That approach gives “Lanterns” a different flavor from the traditional superhero material typically unveiled at Comic-Con. Rather than immediately launching its heroes across the galaxy, the series brings extraordinary power rings, cosmic history, and two uneasy partners into an isolated community where neither man fully understands what he has stumbled into.
Chandler’s Jordan is the experienced Lantern nearing the end of his career, while Pierre’s Stewart is the younger recruit preparing to inherit his responsibilities. Kelly Macdonald co-stars as Kerry, the sheriff of the town where the investigation unfolds.
The friction between the two Lanterns also leaves room for some unexpected comedy. “They brought together a fellow from rural Texas and a fellow from South London,” Pierre told Entertainment Weekly recently, “and they made magic with that.”
“Aaron’s got this great way of giving me this look…like he wanted to break my neck,” Chandler quipped.
The supporting cast includes Garret Dillahunt, Poorna Jagannathan, Laura Linney, Jason Ritter, Ulrich Thomsen, Jasmine Cephas Jones, and J. Alphonse Nicholson. Nathan Fillion also reprises his DCU role as Guy Gardner, while Thomsen plays Sinestro, Hal Jordan’s former mentor and one of the most consequential figures in Green Lantern mythology.
“Lanterns” was created by Chris Mundy, Damon Lindelof, and Tom King, with Mundy serving as showrunner. Mundy and Lindelof previously worked within HBO’s prestige-drama orbit through “True Detective: Night Country” and “Watchmen,” respectively, while King is among DC’s prominent modern comic-book writers.
James Hawes, who directed the first season of “Slow Horses,” helmed the opening two episodes. Stephen Williams, Geeta Vasant Patel, and Alik Sakharov directed additional installments. Mundy, Lindelof, King, Hawes, James Gunn, Peter Safran, and Ron Schmidt executive produce.
The series is a foundational television entry in Gunn and Safran’s interconnected DC Universe, but its Comic-Con introduction emphasizes a story driven as much by suspicion, mortality, and an uneasy partnership as by the heroes’ formidable cosmic abilities.
“Lanterns” premieres August 16 on HBO and will also stream on HBO Max. Watch the Comic-Con trailer below.
Born in Chile, raised in Canada, now living in Brooklyn, NY, Rodrigo Perez is the founder and editor-in-chief of The Playlist, which he launched in 2007. He has worked in entertainment journalism since 2000, including at MTV, and has written for SPIN, IndieWire, Pitchfork, Complex, Magnet, MuchMusic, and various music, film, and entertainment publications over the past two decades.
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