With The Green Lantern series on HBO Max officially casting its Guy Gardner, former Hal Jordan actor Ryan Reynolds gave his social media followers his facetious reaction to the news.
Deadline broke the news that American Horror Story actor Finn Wittrock, who co-starred in the series alongside Quicksilver actor Evan Peters, will play the role of the tough and cocky ring slinger for the upcoming streaming series.
Wittrock has spent most of his career on TV working with Glee producer Ryan Murphy on AHS installments such as Freak Show, but the Massachusetts actor and screenwriter can also be seen in Netflix’s Ratched and FX’s Versace: American Crime Story, the latter for which he received an Emmy nomination.
Related: Ryan Reynolds Explains Why He Poked Fun at His Green Lantern Stint in Deadpool
Not much is known for sure about what Guy will be like in the series, though Deadline had this to say: “Wittrock’s Guy Gardner/Green Lantern is a hulking mass of masculinity, and, as rendered in the comics, an embodiment of 1980s hyper-patriotism. And yet, Guy is somehow likable.”
According to an alleged set of casting leaks, Garnder will be the representation of the straight white male and a bit “toxic.” Additionally, it’s rumored he is going to be partnered with a female of color named Bree Jarta, an original creation for the show and a Lantern who is very cultured in interstellar civilizations.
There is a suspicion among fans that Guy’s hot temper could bring him and Bree to frequent disagreements, an interplay which in turn will be the source of their working tension and the show’s wokeness.
With that in mind, it’s noteworthy that Guy is ginger and Wittrock has dark hair, meaning that either the producers will have to change the character’s hair color to suit the AHS star or the actor could dye his red. But whatever happens, hopefully they stay away from that ugly bowl cut, no matter how synonymous with Guy it is.
On a related note, 2011 Green Lantern film star Ryan Reynolds took notice of Wittrock’s casting and sarcastically took credit for it in an Instagram story. “It’s like I planned it,” wrote the Deadpool actor, who never passes up a chance to poke fun in some way at his history as a ring bearer for DC.
Reynolds’ failed GL venture turns 10 years old this year. It’ll always be remembered for better or worse, but fortunately, the feature isn’t the last word on Hal Jordan or the Corps in film or TV – not even close.
Between the HBO Max series executive produced by Greg Berlanti, Geoff Johns, and Seth Grahame-Smith – which doesn’t yet have an announced premiere date – and the Green Lantern Corps movie said to still be in development from DC Films and Johns’ Mad Ghost outfit, it’s clear we haven’t seen the last of Oa’s intergalactic police force in live-action.
How do you feel about Finn Wittrock playing Guy Gardner and Ryan Reynolds’ little social-media gag? Tell us below.