Lanterns' Showrunner Has One Condition To Make Season 2

While the future of the newly-rebranded DC Universe may be somewhat in doubt, what with the uncertainty surrounding the Warner Bros. Discovery/Paramount merger looming large overhead, the creatives on the ground are proceeding as if it's business as usual. "Lanterns" has just premiered on HBO to rave reviews, lending a much smaller-scale focus to an otherwise cosmic franchise. So, does this series have what it takes to lead the charge and expand the DCU even further? Showrunner Chris Mundy sure hopes so, and he's already laying the groundwork for a second season with "Halt and Catch Fire" co-creator Christopher Cantwell (who is expected to join the "Lanterns" team as co-showrunner).

Whether that actually happens or not, however, depends on one crucial factor. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Mundy revealed that the show's creatives have begun the process of figuring out what the broad arc of what "Lanterns" Season 2 may be. "We're just in the breaking-story stages. We're about six weeks into laying out a season, and then we'll talk to folks about it really soon," he clarified. But, while the series' production team would obviously love to keep telling this story for as long as possible, the ultimate decision will be up to someone else — not just DC Studios heads James Gunn and Peter Safran, or HBO Max overseer Casey Bloys, but the viewers. As Mundy explained:

"We feel good that we told the story in Season 1 well. The question is whether [Season 2] is a story people are interested in. We'll see. I hope so. If that's the case, then we'll get to do another one. We'll tell it in a slightly different way, so that it feels fresh, with characters you know and care about."

While the viewership numbers will end up being the deciding vote, perhaps there are even more reasons why "Lanterns" is in prime position to receive a green light for Season 2. Much of that has to do with the talent in charge, as the HBO series comes from comics veteran Tom King (who first came up with the "True Detective"-style pitch for the series), "Lost" and "The Leftovers" mastermind Damon Lindelof, and the aforementioned Chris Mundy ("Ozark"). The crackling chemistry between Aaron Pierre's John Stewart and Kyle Chandler's Hal Jordan can't be overstated, either. But, most encouragingly, it would appear that "Lanterns" Season 1 had the freedom to go in any direction its writers chose.

That's essentially what Mundy told THR when asked to describe his dynamic with James Gunn. "At the very beginning, James was off doing 'Superman.' He was in the thick of it, and he was in the trenches," he explained. "So, while he would come in for high-level stuff, there was a fair amount of trust that he was gracious enough to give us as he was making his gigantic movie."

Being busy with much bigger fish in "Superman" certainly must've helped "Lanterns" slip under the radar a bit. But, apparently, Gunn went out of his way not to impose anything on the "Lanterns" team to set up John Stewart's forthcoming appearance in "Man of Tomorrow." According to Mundy:

"We knew we were putting John on his feet, but there wasn't an actual story point that we had to land him on. In one way, it makes it scarier because it could be anything, but at the same time, we weren't shoehorned into anything at all."

New episodes of "Lanterns" premiere on HBO Max every Sunday.