With casting news hitting nearly every day, Superman: Legacy is hitting some home runs.
Nowhere is this clearer than the news that Nathan Fillion will fill the role of the Green Lantern. Guy Gardner.
Cocky Nerd Hero
Nathan Fillion is a lot of things to a lot of people. However, to most nerds, he will forever be Malcolm Reynolds from Firefly. The character was the first time Fillion truly showed his attitude and personality to viewers, and they ate it up.
In one of his first roles, Fillion starred in a sitcom called Two Guys and A Girl, where he was opposite a costar with a similar personality: Ryan Reynolds. It is an interesting look back because the two of them seem to have very similar off-screen personas to their on-screen counterparts. They are both a bit cocky and sarcastic, but overall, they are fun and interesting to watch. Often, Fillion comes across as brash, cocky, and ready to side-eye anyone who does something stupid around him.
He also had a career-defining role in Castle, where he played a wealthy writer who teams up with a detective to solve crimes. In the show, he is essentially a guy suffering from a bout of Peter Pan syndrome. He is, and this is important, brash and confused, interested but not as bright as he’d like to be. Castle is a guy who wants to be the cool kid, and he often succeeds, regardless of how he got there.
Fillion has also done extensive voice work, primarily for the DC animated universe. In this role, he has voiced one of the original Green Lanterns, Hal Jordan. In this role, he is a confidant and worldly character who understands his powers and is an active member of the Justice League. His time in these roles has prepared him for his latest in the upcoming Superman: Legacy film.
History With James Gunn
Fillion is no stranger to director James Gunn. He has worked with Gunn on every one of his projects. These have included The Suicide Squad, Slither, Super, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol: 3. Their friendship has blossomed over time, and Fillion is obviously a core member of Gunn’s go-to team.
In these films, Fillion is often playing a caricature. That is to say that he understands that his entire performance is one big wink at the audience. In Guardians of the Galaxy, he is a guard inside a living lab. He wears an absurdly strange, bulbous, flesh-colored suit and makes snide remarks about his underlings.
In The Suicide Squad, he was TDK, The Detachable Kid, a character with a chip on his shoulder whose only power was that his arms came off, and he could control them as they floated through the air. This character was killed horribly when these same floating arms were shot to pieces.
Gunn knows how to use Fillion’s persona to great effect. Audiences want their Fillion to feel unscripted even as his characters are mere seconds from posing, one eyebrow raised, with fans.
Restarting Green Lantern
In a strange turn of events, Nathan Fillion will once again be compared to his former costar. Previously in DC cinema, we were treated to the CGI mess that was Ryan Reynolds’ Green Lantern film. It is the epitome of what Fillion’s character should avoid.
The first is simple imagination. Reynolds’ lantern was very non-creative with the constructs he projected from his ring. The second is his costume. Gunn will probably go with a more comic-accurate costume, as the Guy Gardner character had his own distinct style.
Essentially, even though he is playing a different Green Lantern, the lessons of the first film must be learned. We will have the advantage of not having to sit through a full origin story as James Gunn has announced that he is putting Superman in an already full-formed universe.
For this reason, we will get a Guy Gardner who comes at the audience hard and fast. Where Hal Jordan keeps a cool head and thinks a situation through, Gardner is the hero who walks in and knocks things down. He leaves the questions to others and shrugs when things don't go completely to plan.
Why Nathan Fillion Is Perfect for Guy Gardner
While Fillion has voiced Hal Jordan, his live-action persona is far better suited to the character of Guy Gardner.
Gardner is another green lantern whose attitude is often depicted differently from Hal Jordan’s. Where Jordan is a calm, focused, and astute hero, Guy Gardner is pompous and forthright. He has the basic building blocks to be a lantern, but his biggest asset is his willpower.
Once chosen to be worthy of a green lantern ring, the bearer must have immense willpower. Guy Gardner is one of the most strong-willed and headstrong characters to ever grace the Justice League roster. But he’s also a valuable member, as his inability to back down makes him a strong asset and a powerful ally.
Fillion will fit into this character like a glove. The individual who is still drawn to the team. He may need convincing, but he’s one of the good ones. Fillion has the ability to give off a specific quality: smug relatability.
In the end, Fillion will bring the right amount of himself to this character. If executed correctly, it could be the role people begin citing him for. James Gunn has called up one of his best actors to fill the role he was destined to play.