Green Lantern series at HBO Max being redeveloped after losing writer

HBO Max's Green Lantern TV show is being redeveloped. The series was set to focus on Guy Gardner, Alan Scott, and multiple other Lanterns, but will now instead center on John Stewart, one of DC's original Black heroes, per The Hollywood Reporter. 

The report explains that showrunner/writer Seth Grahame-Smith has left the series – he finished scripts for an entire season, consisting of eight episodes. According to THR's sources, Grahame-Smith departed the project voluntarily after multiple leadership changes at HBO Max, Warner Bros. Television, and DC Comics. Executive producer Greg Berlanti is still attached.

Finn Wittrock was cast as Guy Gardner, with Jeremy Irvine set to play Alan Scott. Neither actor is still attached to the project, but the publication says Berlanti Productions is keen to work with both of them if the retooled Green Lantern show progresses. The show is said to have a script-to-series commitment, but development has slowed to something "more HBO-like." There's no new logline for the show, either, as it has returned to an early development stage. 

Green Lantern was set to be DC's most expensive TV show ever, with an estimated budget of around $120 million, though its new budget is thought to be much lower. According to the report, the choice to start Green Lantern fresh with a focus on John Stewart was made following former DC Comics boss Walter Hamada's recent departure, with Stewart said to originally be "off the table" to the show's producers, who were instead focusing on Gardner, Scott and a "multitude of other Lanterns – from comic book favorites to never-before-seen heroes." Per THR's sources, it was nothing to do with Grahame-Smith's scripts that "doomed" the show but rather the hefty budget. James Gunn and Peter Safran's new roles co-running DC Studios are not linked to the decision, either, as they don't start until November 1. 

It seems to be a time for major shake-ups in the DCEU, as Henry Cavill has confirmed his return as Superman and Black Adam star Dwayne Johnson is teasing his own plans for the future of his and Cavill's characters. You can catch up on the DCEU so far with our guide to watching the DC movies in order.