Guy Gardner has officially been cast. Wanna make somethin' of it?
Deadline is reporting that the upcoming HBO Max series Green Lantern has cast Finn Wittrock as Guy Gardner, a key member of DC Comics' interstellar law enforcement agency, the Green Lantern Corps.
According to the article, Guy is described as "a hulking mass of masculinity, and, as rendered in the comics, an embodiment of 1980s hyper-patriotism. And yet, Guy is somehow likable."
Written by Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim and Seth Grahame-Smith, Green Lantern reinvents the classic DC property through a story spanning decades and galaxies, beginning on Earth in 1941 with the very first Green Lantern, secretly gay FBI agent Alan Scott, and 1984, with cocky alpha male Guy Gardner and half-alien Bree Jarta. They’ll be joined by a multitude of other Lanterns — from comic book favorites to never-before-seen heroes.
Wittrock, 36, is best known for his various roles on the FX horror anthology series American Horror Story, including Dandy Mott, Tristan Duffy, Rudolph Valentino, Jether Polk, and Bobby Richter. His film appearances include La La Land, If Beale Street Could Talk, The Big Short, and Winter's Tale, while his other TV appearances include Torchwood: Miracle Day, Ratched, The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story, Masters of Sex, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Criminal Minds, and All My Children.
Created in 1968 by John Broome and Gil Kane, Guy Gardner first appeared in
Green Lantern (vol.2) #
59. Guy's father, Roland Gardner, was an abusive alcoholic who beat Guy every day. Some of Guy's injuries were visible such as bruises, cuts and bumps but others were invisible and were emotionally inflicted. Guy worked hard in school to try to win his father's approval, but Roland instead lavished attention and compliments upon Guy's older brother, Mace. During his mid-teens, Guy became a juvenile delinquent, constantly defying authority. Later, he was straightened out by his older brother, Mace, who was now a police officer. Guy eventually went to college, supporting himself, and earned bachelor's degrees in education and psychology from the University of Michigan, where he also played football until a career-ending injury that deeply affected him.
After college, Guy worked as a social welfare caseworker, dealing with prison inmates and their rehabilitation. He abandoned this line of work, however, fearing it brought out his aggressive nature. Moving on, he became a teacher for children with disabilities.
The appointed Green Lantern of Space Sector 2814, an alien named Abin Sur from the planet Ungara, crash-landed on Earth after being mortally wounded. As Sur died, his power ring sought and found two potential successors, Guy Gardner and Hal Jordan. Jordan was nearer to the crash, so he was chosen over Gardner. Gardner was relegated to backup status should anything happen to Jordan. When Jordan became aware of Gardner's status as his backup, he went out of his way to set up a chance meeting, and the two became friends. Though Gardner was originally oblivious to Jordan's secret identity, he eventually assisted Jordan during his adventures. During an earthquake, Gardner was hit by a bus while attempting to rescue one of his students. During his recovery, the Guardians recruited John Stewart to become Jordan's new "backup".
During the event known as Crisis on Infinite Earths, the Guardians of the Universe split into two factions over how to confront the Crisis. A minority faction of six Guardians emulated their former brethren, the Controllers, by recruiting a Green Lantern to directly attack and destroy the forces of the antimatter universe. For reasons unknown, Gardner was brought in by the renegade Guardians, given a power ring not tied to the Central Power Battery on Oa, sporting a uniform similar to that worn by the Fists of the Guardians, and given a mission. He was to recruit and command the deadliest and most powerful criminals in the universe, including the Shark, Hector Hammond, Sonar, Throttle, Blindside, and Goldface, to launch a strike against the home base of the Anti-Monitor.
By this time, Gardner had suffered brain damage from being hit by the bus and other various previous events, which manifested itself in the form of an arrogant, violent, unstable, and often childish new personality. Gardner believed himself to be the last "true" Green Lantern, superior to all the others, particularly Jordan. Five of the renegade Guardians were slain by a wave of antimatter, and the sixth eventually reconciled with the rest of the Guardians. In the meantime, Gardner succeeded in his task of recruiting powerful villains. Both Hal Jordan and John Stewart prevented Gardner from completing his mission, which would have ultimately destroyed the universe. Following the Crisis, the majority of the Green Lantern Corps had lost their rings. The Guardians assigned Gardner to be the official Green Lantern of Sector 2814, becoming a member of the reformed Justice League, while Jordan was assigned to recruit new Corps members.
Recently, Gardner was sent by Hal Jordan to join the Red Lantern Corps undercover, defeating Atrocitus and taking command of the group. It was revealed that part of his decision to join with the Red Lanterns was feeling as if he had never fit in as a Green Lantern. As a Red Lantern, Gardner managed to keep his rage in check, successfully leading most of the Red Lanterns. After joining with the Green Lanterns to defeat the cosmic terrorist Relic, Gardner has since returned to the Green Lantern Corps.
Wittrock will be the second actor to portray Guy Gardner in live-action, after Matthew Settle in the failed 1997 CBS TV pilot Justice League of America. The character has also appeared in various animated projects, including Batman: The Brave and the Bold (voiced by James Arnold Taylor), Young Justice (voiced by Troy Baker), Green Lantern: The Animated Series (voiced by Diedrich Bader), and Superman: Red Son (voiced by Jim Meskimen).
Green Lantern is expected to premiere on HBO Max sometime in 2022.