James Gunn and Peter Safran’s DCU has been taking shape over the past year, with Gunn’s Superman film as well as the shows Peacemaker and Creature Commandos have struck chords with audiences. However, Supergirl – the most recent big-screen entry in the burgeoning interconnected universe – was met with middling reviews and low box office receipts. HBO's Lanterns comes on the heels of that movie’s performance, and I love how one of the EP’s responded when asked if the creative team now feels “pressure.”
To put it simply, this is an important time for the DCU continuity, as the brain trust at DC Studios seeks to draw in fans with varied stories of do-gooders, bad guys and everyone in between. Craig Gillespie’s Supergirl (which I mostly enjoyed) now represents a misstep in that plan. This came up when Lanterns showrunner Chris Mundy was asked about this while speaking to SFX Magazine on CinemaBlend. Mundy suggested that any question about pressure should be forwarded to his bosses before adding more thoughts:
It’s a better question for the folks at DC, honestly. I feel like there’s pressure on everything that comes out all the time. We did our absolute best on this show and it was the moment in time when we made it. I want people to watch it and like it. And my desire doesn’t change whether or not Zara Zor-El’s solo film was a huge hit. I’d still want them to see that this group of people came together and did this thing.
So, in other words, the Ozark alum is cognizant of the 2026 movie schedule entry’s performance, but he’s not dwelling on it. Mundy’s perspective on the situation is more than reasonable, considering that he can only control the corner of the DCU that he’s responsible for. As he says, that also means encouraging people to watch the show he and his team made, despite how some may feel in the aftermath of Supergirl. I appreciate Mundy’s candor on his show as well as the fact that he still understands the corporate side of this:
On the business side of it, I’m sure if I was sitting in a boardroom at Warner Bros or DC or whatever, people are more incentivised to hope it does well.
It goes without saying that execs at WB and DC Studios probably wish Supergirl had performed better. As it stands, the film has only made a little over $126 million worldwide against a reported production budget somewhere between $170 million and $186 million. Despite the movie not moving the needle, execs are still excited about Man of Tomorrow, Clayface and other upcoming entries in the franchise.
As for Lanterns, it has received positive reviews thus far (though some viewers weren’t happy with that Hal Jordan twist in the premiere). Still, like an extraterrestrial lantern, the future still seems bright for the DCU. Not only that but both Green Lantern John Stewart and Kara will both be featured in Man of Tomorrow. All in all, I’d say fans shouldn’t start worrying just yet and keep a level-headed mindset like Chris Mundy.
Lanterns airs on HBO on Sundays at 9 p.m. ET amid the 2026 TV schedule, and episodes are also available to stream with an HBO Max subscription.
