Why The Lanterns Season 1 Finale Moved Kyle Chandler To Tears

The "Lanterns" finale revealed who shot Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler), and it was even more tragic than we could have imagined. Turns out the poor guy was gunned down by his own girlfriend, and even managed to get out an "I love you" before the bullet struck. Just in case fans weren't already upset enough, the writers made sure to deliver an emotional hammer blow in the finale's closing moments. Before the credits roll, John Stewart (Aaron Pierre) and the Halogram share a touching moment wherein the latter tricks the former into repeating his "I love you" line, before responding with, "I love you, too, Junior." If you didn't feel even the hint of a tear forming at this moment, you might be as emotionally detached as the Guardians of the Universe themselves.

One person who certainly did feel a pang of emotion was Kyle Chandler. SlashFilm attended a virtual press conference after the "Lanterns" Season 1 finale, where the Hal Jordan actor talked about his reaction to watching the episode. "It's like when you win the state championship," he said. "Tears come to your eye because all the work that you put in slams into you at one moment on the field." Chandler went on to explain further how watching the finale with his wife prompted a surge of emotion, likening it to "saying goodbye to a lot of old friends and a lot of great memories." He continued: "All of it really did come packed in just a little shooting star, and I did have to gently wipe away a tear so my wife didn't make fun of me."

But it was Hal and John's father-son dynamic that really struck Chandler, who reflected on his personal life while talking about his on-screen relationship with Pierre.

"Lanterns" Episode 7 retconned significant Green Lantern lore, revealing that Hal Jordan's father ended his own life by crashing his test plane. In the episode, we learn that previous generations of Jordan men suffered from an unbearable depression that made them feel completely unworthy, in what Hal refers to as "The Jordan Boys' legacy." Aside from shedding a disturbing light on Hal's death, this added yet another facet to the complex themes explored in "Lanterns," specifically the relationships between children and their parents.

In John Stewart's case, his mother and father relentlessly trained him to become fearless to prepare him for becoming a Green Lantern. As such, John never had a normal bond with his mother or father. Meanwhile, Hal lost his dad when he was just a kid, which not only meant he and John both missed out on normal parental relationships; it also paralleled Kyle Chandler's personal life.

During the post-finale press conference, the actor said, "The father-son aspect of this show, I think, is ... for me, I lost my pop when I was 14, and it is just incredible." It's no wonder, then, that John and Hal's relationship affected Chandler. "Hal had that going on with John, that father-son relationship," he continued. "It became apparent while we were shooting it, and that wisdom and being able to give back a little bit. So that love story is, he won my heart over in the end. And I was able to do what my father would have done for me."

Hal Jordan's death in "Lanterns" was controversial enough for James Gunn to address it. But Kyle Chandler had no prior investment in the character and was therefore able to see past his death and find a connection to the story. The actor has admitted to not being familiar with the Green Lantern comics, telling the Los Angeles Times, "Did I know anything about Green Lantern? I did not." But given the show's exploration of Hal Jordan's grief and the character's connection with John Stewart, you can see why he might have been drawn to the project.

In a separate 2019 Los Angeles Times interview, Chandler spoke about losing his father, explaining how he found some comfort in movies. "Films filled a spot for me," he said. "I had a hard time figuring out how I worked, how I functioned. Even to this day, I'll get a part and something goes back to that period — because there was my life before my father died, and after he died." It's no wonder Chandler was particularly moved by the father-son dynamic between John and Hal, both of whom similarly saw their own relationships with their fathers cut short.

In the same interview, Chandler added, "It's hard for kids to lose a parent; you're never given this baton of manhood. I'm always searching for that baton, if you will." With that in mind, "Lanterns" seems like an even more personal project for Chandler, whose character literally says the lines, "Every kid's worst fear is losing a parent. Once that happens, there is nothing to fear anymore." While the decision to alter Hal Jordan's backstory might not have gone over well with some fans, clearly it had significant emotional resonance for Chandler and, no doubt, many other viewers.