DC’s Lanterns Casts Greg Dillahunt (Could He Be Playing a Major Villain?)

DC’s Lanterns has been ramping up with several big castings, and now the highly anticipated series has added another compelling name to the mix. Deadline is reporting that Garret Dillahunt (Fear The Walking Dead, The Gifted) has joined the series in a major recurring role, and the official description reveals some surprising details about his character that could indicate he’s playing a big-time Green Lantern villain. Dillahunt joins a cast that now includes Kyle Chandler, Aaron Pierre, and Kelly MacDonald.

The official character description states that Dillahunt will play a “modern cowboy William Macon, a self-righteous, conspiracy-minded man who masks his ruthless ambition behind a charming and calculated facade.” There’s a lot to break down there, but first, let’s get to the name.

The name William Macon is especially significant in regard to a longtime Green Lantern villain known as Black Hand, In the comics the character’s real name is William Hand, and early on in life William was obsessed with death, leading him to kill their dog and put it on display as taxidermy. An interaction with Atrocitus (the leader of the Red Lanterns of Rage) would then find him stealing the Cosmic Divining Rod.

A Powerful Foe

That would allow him to absorb the energy from Lantern Power Rings, but it would also allow him to locate Power Rings, which he utilized on several occasions. Unfortunately, he could never take down the Lanterns, and after slowly being driven crazy, he turned the Cosmic Divining Rod on himself. His death however didn’t last long, as Scar (the rogue Guardian that would turn on the Green Lantern Corps) would create a Black Lantern ring and then reanimated William, turning him into the symbol and herald of Death in the emotional spectrum.

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That all led to the epic storyline Blackest Night, but there will be plenty of time to dive into that. As for Lanterns, the description gives hints at a villainous nature and someone who is able to mask that quite well. That’s not exactly 100% fitting of how Black Hand has been portrayed in the comics, but it is an interesting take on a character who is able to call upon that kind of power, especially with the conspiracy theory and modern cowboy elements thrown in.

With this being a mystery regarding a central murder and death being an obvious part of that story, it would make all the sense in the world to bring in someone like Black Hand, and as we saw in Blackest Night, you can build the character and the impact he can have on the greater DCU in a massive way after establishing who he is. It’s also pretty fresh compared to another Sinestro story, though most Lantern fans would probably agree that Sinestro does need to be a part of this story in some fashion.

Chris Mundy is the showrunner on the series, while Tom King and Damon Lindelof are co-writing and executive producing. James Hawes is also executive producing and will be directing the show’s first two episodes. No release date for Lanterns has been revealed yet, but hopefully, that information hits soon.

Are you excited for the new Lanterns casting? You can talk all things DC and TV with me on Threads and Twitter @mattaguilarcb!