HBO’s Green Lantern TV Show Trailer All But Confirms Massive DC Villain Debut

The first trailer for Lanterns reveals more of the plot of the Green Lantern show and sets up a connection that makes me even more confident about a major DC Universe villain’s debut. After watching Nathan Fillion’s Guy Gardner in Superman, with James Gunn’s DCU nailing the hero’s persona and powers, my excitement for HBO’s Lanterns TV show grew exponentially.

We recently got to see more of Kyle Chandler’s Hal Jordan and Aaron Pierre’s John Stewart in an official Lanterns teaser, which HBO shared online. It revealed Hal’s extreme approach to training John. However, a full-on teaser was shared before that, but not to the general public, and that footage made a DC villain more likely for Lanterns‘ cast of characters.

Lanterns’ First Trailer Could Set Up A Justice League Conenction

Before HBO shared a Lanterns teaser as part of a sizzle reel for its 2026 projects, the first Green Lantern TV show trailer was shown at private events, like the HBO Max Upfront in Brazil (via Omelete), where a Hal Jordan twist was revealed. While Hal is in charge of training John Stewart, he was not the first choice for the job.

The first Lanterns trailer reveals that Hal is filling in for someone else, though it does not specify who that Green Lantern might be. After looking at the many Green Lantern comics and adaptations, there is a good chance that Katma Tui, who trained John in the animated Justice League series, could occupy that same role in the DCU. That could be huge.

Black Hand DC Universe Debut Theory Might Be Accurate If Katma Tui Is In Lanterns

Garret Dillahunt Aiming A Gun As John Dorie On Fear The Walking Dead

If Katma Tui were to be John Stewart’s original trainer in Lanterns, then the chances of Black Hand being in the upcoming DC release increase. For a long time, Fear the Walking Dead star Garret Dillahunt has been rumored to play Black Hand in Lanterns. According to casting reports, his character’s name is William Macon, a modern cowboy with ruthless ambition and charm.

Besides the fact that Black Hand’s name is William Hand, which connects him to Dillahunt’s character, the first description for the DC series teased how the show will impact the shared universe. According to James Gunn, Hal Jordan and John Stewart find an “ancient horror on Earth.” That description surely matches something as dark as Black Hand and the Black Lantern Corps.

On Instagram, Garret Dillahunt teased his Black Hand casting (via Bleeding Cool), sharing a post that suggested he was playing the villain, adding a thinking emoji to it. In the comics, Katma Tui was one of the characters who became a Black Lantern. As such, by possibly introducing her in the DCU, Lanterns could be planting seeds for Black Hand and Blackest Night.