Green Lantern Movie Casting
by Shawn Lampron | Monday, July 13, 2009
A few eons ago in online writing terms, I wrote a quick article on Green Lantern, detailing the excellent storylines being pumped out by its scribe Geoff Johns. I’ve extolled Green Lantern and Captain America alternately on GeekForceFive, holding them as virtuous examples of how mainstream comics can be critically and commercially successful. Since my innocent meanderings, the murmurs of a Green Lantern movie have risen to a veritable geek crescendo as the casting news shifted this movie from a probably to a definite. What I’ll be doing within this article is looking at the unlikely quartet who allegedly made it to the final four for the portrayal of this hero, as well as the character himself, Hal Jordan.
Hal Jordan
While being called Green Lantern is analogous to being called “cop,” given the number of Green Lanterns in the Green Lantern Corps, Hal Jordan has always been the quintessential bearer of the moniker. The son of a pilot who became a pilot himself, Hal Jordan is usually depicted as shown above. He’s a white male with brown wavy hair who appears to be anywhere from thirty to forty depending on the artist. Just as important as his physical depiction is the attitude. Hal is usually shown to have a willingness to take quick action, even erring towards recklessness at times. Strong-headed, he has a touch of arrogance that can annoy others, but helps fuel his powers. Green Lantern rings are powered by will, so if you believe you’re the man and you can do anything, the ring will respond.
The Three Runners-Up
Proving once again that some studio execs just don’t get it, a group was reported to be pushing strongly for a Justin Timberlake version of Green Lantern. Even if this man had never been a Michael Jackson wannabe in the whitest boy band ever, I would never be able to shake the image of Justin crying while getting Punk’d by Ashton Kutcher on MTV. Clearly, this isn’t the man to fit the image and the rugged manliness of one Hal Jordan. I could rail on this all day, but I’ll just let his brooding man-boy mug tell the story.
Another pretty boy, but I will admit that I have a soft spot for Jared Leto. Discounting that he’s reportedly one of the biggest man-whores in Hollywood, I have a great deal of respect for him as an actor. He’s been in Requiem for a Dream, Fight Club, and has even brushed up on his chops by portraying Mark David Chapman. To top it all off, I actually like his band 30 Seconds to Mars. However, despite the fact that he’s age-appropriate for the role, the Dorian Gray-style deal he made with the Devil has left him unable to age like normal human beings. Also, I can’t really see him as carrying that rugged flyboy swagger.
Out of the final four, this is the man I was hoping would carry home the crown, but alas, he lost out. I will admit that I haven’t seen The Hangover, but Wedding Crashers is a raunchy comedy that is near and dear to me. In it, Bradley Cooper shows the sort of brash asshole edge that an actor would need to portray Hal Jordan. This is a man I could envision getting a Dishonorable Discharge from the Air Force for slugging his superior officer. Hell, he’s even got the hair. Alas, it was not to be. For those who haven’t heard, the winner was:
As I remarked on Twitter, it must be a new requirement that every comic series inject Ryan Reynolds into a role. Many other fans are trying to play the voice of reason, stating that it’s no big deal that he portrayed Deadpool in X-Men Origins: Wolverine and will get his own vehicle for that character. However, many of those geeks are forgetting that Ryan was also in an awful little movie that served as the end piece for the Blade series. While not precisely canon, Blade was another Marvel vehicle. Apparently, Ryan Reynolds won’t be happy until he makes every geek on the planet miserable with envy: he has killer abs, is portraying every badass comic character he can get his grimy hands upon, and gets to hump Scarlet Johansson without getting slapped with a restraining order or a lawsuit.
While I’m not thrilled by how this exciting little brawl turned out, I can whisper to myself in the dark of the night, “At least it wasn’t Joey Fatone.”
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Comments
Bryan White says:
You know? I have got to be the one man on Earth not lamenting this casting decision. Not only am I swimming against that tide, I also wasn’t crazy about the possibility of Brad Cooper who was the fan’s choice by mainstream vote, apparently.
And I’m comfortable enough with my own sexuality to admit to you all, right here on the internet, that I was actually enthusiastic about the possibility of Justin Timberlake as Hal. I don’t particularly care for his music, but I think he’s a riot on SNL and he’s a good actor, to boot. The guy is a born entertainer and probably had the proper swagger to pull of Hal Jordan.
But I’m also not disappointed by Ryan Reynolds. His run as Deadpool obviously had some influence here but I also thought that his appearance in Wolverine was the one good thing about that movie.
I have no particularly strong emotional attachment to GL but I’d like to see a movie. The possibilities of the ring on film could be nothing short of epic. My one concern, over casting, is obviously how they’ll handle the suit. Hollywood isn’t crazy about all-over costuming. Particularly this notion of the eye-mask.
Shawn says:
Bryan, I’m not sure that I really don’t like Justin, despite the fact that I give him a bit of a roasting in my casting update. I just think that he wouldn’t have fit Hal Jordan. However, if you want to bring in Justin as a cameo a la Guy Gardner, I’d be more than supportive. I think that would be a role he could fit well. I could buy him as temperamental enough to fit the role of Gardner and think he’d be a great fit.
As for Reynolds, I think he’s a great guy and a good actor with a good “look” to him. I’m just throwing the sardonic edge into the article because I’m curious as to why he’s the hot commodity in comic films now. The last actor this rabid over comic parts was Nic Cage, and God knows he’s got a few loose screws.
Jeremy Couturier says:
Is Green Lantern really that popular? I’m kind of curious why this movie is being made, as there are whole slew of DC characters who would translate better to the screen. GL doesn’t strike me as a crossover character that will bring in the average moviegoer. Then again what the hell do I know, I’m still holding out for a Preacher adaptation, Arseface FTW!
Reynolds is a fine choice and the most bankable I would assume. He would also make a fine Fletch, if they ever decided to do that series right.
E. Christopher Clark says:
@Jeremy - I spoke about this a little bit in this morning’s FiveCast (at least I think I did). It is puzzling that Green Lantern is coming to the silver screen before Wonder Woman, I think.
I’m still holding out for a Preacher adaptation, too. But I want a series, not a movie. Or a series of movies guaranteed, and not just a one-shot.
@Bryan - I’m glad that I’m not alone in thinking that Justin has some comedic acting chops.
@Shawn - Thanks for following up with that picture of Guy. Like I said, I don’t know much about the Lantern, but Timberlake looks like he might be a good fit there, as you say.
@Nap - I don’t know much about Green Lantern besides Hal Jordan. Who’s your favorite?
nap says:
I respect Reynolds’ acting chops (and his previous work) but he’s a poor fit for this role imo. Not that I ever really liked the Hal Jordan Green Lantern anyway. Now who gets to play Sinestro? Mandy Patinkin? :p