HBO Max2026-present1 Season

Lanterns Games

Name: Lanterns
Genre: small-town noir, mentorship, alien conspiracy, dual timeline, fear and will
Released: 2026-present

Two cops. One ring. One very small town.

Veteran Green Lantern Hal Jordan is handed a rookie he did not ask for and a murder he cannot explain, in a Nebraska town that turns out to matter more than either of them expected.

★94% RT

6.6M premiere - largest DC series debut on HBO Max

2 games

2+ articles

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Lanterns Trivia

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trivia5 min

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Lanterns Puzzle

easy

slide-puzzle3 min

About Lanterns

Lanterns is the DC Universe's HBO flagship, created by Chris Mundy, Damon Lindelof and Tom King, and it plays as small-town noir rather than superhero spectacle. Kyle Chandler's Hal Jordan is a worn-down veteran of the Green Lantern Corps. Aaron Pierre's John Stewart is an ex-Marine and architect who has had a power ring for roughly five minutes. Together they work a murder in Rushville, Nebraska, across a dual timeline running between 2016 and 2026 - a case that opens out into the Manhunters, the Guardians, and an imprisoned Sinestro who considers John Stewart a greater threat than any of them.

Lanterns Articles & Guides

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RecapSpoilers

Lanterns Episode 2 'Trust Fall' Recap: The Manhunters, and What Sinestro Says About John

Episode 2 stays entirely in 2016, gives John a bird he shouldn't be able to make, and ends with Hal in an intergalactic prison getting the worst possible answer to a simple question.

8 min · 1,700 words

ExplainerSpoilers

What Are the Manhunters? Lanterns' Big Bad Explained Without the Comics Homework

The androids the Guardians built before the Green Lantern Corps, why they failed, and why a show about small-town policing picked exactly the right monster.

7 min · 1,500 words

Season Overview

Season 12026 · 8 episodes

Hal and John investigate a murder in Rushville, Nebraska across two timelines. The premiere drew 6.6 million viewers - the biggest DC Studios series debut on HBO Max. Episode 2, "Trust Fall", introduces the Manhunters and ends with Hal confronting a jailed Sinestro, who names John Stewart as his greatest threat. Airing weekly Sundays through the October 4 finale.

Themes

small-town noirmentorshipalien conspiracydual timelinefear and willjustice

Lanterns Terminology

ring

Power ring - runs on willpower and needs recharging

construct

A solid object built from ring energy and imagination

sector

Patrol territory - Earth sits in Sector 2814

manhunter

Android enforcer that predated the Green Lantern Corps

Frequently Asked Questions

When do new episodes of Lanterns come out?

New episodes air Sunday nights on HBO and stream on HBO Max the same evening. Season 1 runs eight episodes from August 16 to the October 4, 2026 finale.

Do I need to know Green Lantern comics to watch?

No. The series is built as a murder mystery in rural Nebraska and introduces the Corps, the rings and the Manhunters from scratch. Comics readers get more out of the Sinestro material, but nothing is assumed.

Who is the villain in Lanterns?

The season centres on the Manhunters, android enforcers that predate the Green Lantern Corps. Ulrich Thomsen also appears as an imprisoned Thaal Sinestro, who tells Hal the Manhunters are only his second-greatest threat - the first being John Stewart.

Is Lanterns connected to the wider DCU?

Yes. It is part of the DC Universe slate, and the Rushville case widens into conspiracies that reach beyond Earth. Nathan Fillion appears as Guy Gardner.