An insider at DC Studios claims that HBO’s Lanterns was not renewed for a second season in spite of rave reviews and audience interest, as told in a report from Variety.
Variety’s report comes on the heels of James Gunn and Peter Safran’s exit from DC Studios on Monday, November 9. In a statement to the public, Gunn cited a dislike for the more “corporate” aspect of his position, citing long hours that negatively impacted his personal relationships.
Unsurprisingly, fans are now worried about the future of the DCU, given that Gunn had only been in his role for four years with just three films to show for it. Superman was released to generally positive reception; Supergirl decidedly less so; Clayface was also a mixed bag, but Lanterns, the live-action show that released on HBO this year, was a massive success.
Boasting viewership numbers that rivaled the likes of The Pitt, it’s safe to say that audiences loved Kyle Chandler’s Hal Jordan and Aaron Pierre’s John Stewart, and hopes were high for a second season. In fact, it seemed almost inevitable — but, according to insiders, it didn’t quite “capture the zeitgeist.” Whatever that means.
Variety’s report says this insider pointed out that the series “didn’t get renewed for a second season,” telling the outlet, “People cannot wait to make another season of a hit show.”
This news, if true, comes as quite a shock — but that seems to be the theme of the month, given Safran and Gunn’s unexpected exit. In October, series co-creator Damon Lindelof revealed that writers were already hashing out ideas for a second season, though it hadn’t been greenlit just yet.
Safran confirmed this news in an October interview with IGN, though he admitted that it hinged on whether or not the team could come up with a story worth following up from the first season.
"The episodic world is always going to be a really important part of our overall slate, it's a great way to tell stories that need more real estate than a feature film can offer you, and it's a great way to introduce characters that we then bring into the feature world," Safran told us. "And I think that Aaron Pierre and John Stewart are a perfect example of that. We introduced him in Lanterns, and audiences will see him next summer in Man of Tomorrow. So, it's really important to us in continuing to tell aspects of the story that we're not telling in the feature film world, so there's more to come.
"Listen, we'll see what happens with Lanterns Season 2. If, I think, the collective group of HBO and DC and Chris Mundy and the team all feel like we've got something that is a worthy successor to quite a beloved first season of television, then I wouldn't be surprised to see more."
While official news on the future of Lanterns remains up in the air, this report paints a grim picture for the future of the DCU which was, somewhat tragically, only just getting started.