Green Lantern's Director Believes Ryan Reynolds Could Have Saved The Movie With One Move

The reputation of Martin Campbell's 2011 superhero flick "Green Lantern" precedes it. "Green Lantern" was one of the more high-profile bombs of its decade, making $237 million on a $200 million budget (which, using Hollywood math, equals massive losses). Although the Hal Jordan/Green Lantern character had been a part of DC Comics since 1959, he was still a tough sell to mainstream audiences, given how strange he was. 

Briefly: the Green Lantern belongs to the Green Lantern Corps, a widespread intergalactic peacekeeping force of aliens that merrily sails around the cosmos righting wrongs. The members of the Corps are "selected" by semi-sentient rings that affix themselves randomly to their fingers and grant them bizarre superpowers. Green Lantern can fly, yes, but also construct physical objects ... out of the color green. Oh yes, and green is the color of willpower, and the other colors of the spectrum also have their own emotional powers behind them. The mythology runs deeper, of course, but the very concept remains strange. 

Trying to make a straightforward action/adventure film starring the Green Lantern was an uneasy proposition, and the film couldn't be salvaged even with the charming movie star Ryan Reynolds in the title role, and "GoldenEye" and "Casino Royale" director Martin Campbell at the helm. The film also starred Blake Lively as Hal's love interest, Peter Sarsgaard as the villain, and Mark Strong as a Green Lantern named Sinestro. Angela Bassett and Tim Robbins also have small roles. Nothing stopped the film from being widely mocked upon its release, and critics panned it. It felt over-written. 

Campbell recently spoke with the director, and he accepts the blame for what went wrong, but also felt that one thing could have saved his movie. Specifically, he wished Ryan Reynolds had written it.

Ryan Reynolds would, of course, find great success years later playing the super-antihero character Deadpool in a series of X-Men-adjacent movies. Those films were self-aware comedy films, and Reynolds, in character, would regularly break the fourth wall to comment on the machinations of Hollywood and the cynicism of superhero filmmaking. Those films featured several meta references to Campbell's "Green Lantern" movie, including a standout moment in "Deadpool 2" where a time-traveling Deadpool visits the real-world Ryan Reynolds to shoot him through the head before he can say "yes" to starring in "Green Lantern." Reynolds clearly has a marvelous sense of humor and might have been well-suited to making a tongue-in-cheek version of "Green Lantern" in the first place. 

Campbell certainly thinks so. Although Campbell takes all the necessary blame, he did say the following: 

"I wish to God [Ryan Reynolds] had written the script, and it would have been great. But he's always taking jabs at it. And fair enough. Though, listen, it was a big success for him because he met Blake Lively."

In 2011, Reynolds had divorced his first wife, Scarlett Johansson, but had met his second wife, Blake Lively, on the set of "Green Lantern." The two wed in 2012 and have had four children together. Also, "Green Lantern" hasn't affected Reynold's personal fortunes one whit; he still owns (or has owned) multiple successful non-film-related businesses, including Aviation Gin, the Wrexham Football Club, and Mint Mobile. Reynolds is still handsome, popular, rich, and married to Blake Lively. And he openly takes digs at "Green Lantern." The film hasn't hurt him in the slightest. 

Campbell knew people didn't like "Green Lantern" and was fine with that. He noted that it wasn't a total wash for Reynolds, at the very least, saying: 

"Oh, it's fair enough. You know, look, people didn't like it. It failed, right? I was the director, so, you know, obviously I take the heat for it, which is fine ... But all I can say is, Ryan's a very funny guy, very fun. We actually had a terrific time on the film. I thoroughly enjoyed working with him and with Blake Lively. She was terrific as well. And he's always, he's got a great whip, you know, Ryan."

Campbell hasn't been resting on his laurels, having gone on to direct five additional features after "Green Lantern," including the Jackie Chan vehicle "The Foreigner," the Maggie Q vehicle "The Protégé," the Liam Neeson vehicle "Memory," and the Eva Green vehicle "Dirty Angels." His newest film, "Cleaner," was released in February. This was in addition to directing TV shows like "Reckless," "Warriors," and "Last Resort." "Green Lantern" was unimpressive, but Campbell continues to ply his craft with aplomb. 

Meanwhile, Reynolds' most recent superhero flick, 2024's "Deadpool & Wolverine," made over $1.3 billion dollars. The Green Lantern would go on to appear (in a cameo) in the 2017 film "Justice League" and has a role in the upcoming superhero flick "Superman" directed by James Gunn. The new Green Lantern, the Guy Gardner version of the character, will be played by Nathan Fillion. The character may be strange, and his film may have tanked, but, golly, Warner Bros. is going to keep on trying.