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Jack Black almost became a DC superhero in a film that was in development since 1997.Green Lanternwas rewritten to be a more comedy-oriented superhero film in 2004 and Black was all set to star in the film. But unlike today, he did not have the hugeKung Fu Pandafanbase to back him up. The furious uproar from DC fans led to the shelving of the project and Black was disappointed at the missed opportunity.
The project would ultimately land with Ryan Reynolds, only for fans to get one of the worst superhero movies of all time. It remains a mystery whether Jack Black could’ve played the role of the intergalactic hero better than Reynolds.
Jack Black Almost Played The Role Of DC’s Green Lantern
In 1997, Kevin Smith turned down the offer to pen the script for aGreen Lanternmovie. He was a prominent choice back then, having written the canceledSuperman Livesfor Tim Burton, starringNicolas Cage. TheGreen Lanternproject has since been in development. However, whenHotel Transylvaniawriter Robert Smigel was approached with the project, he gave a comedic angle to the superhero origin story.
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Jack Blackbecame the top choice to star in the film, which came as a shock to many DC fans. They didn’t want aGreen Lanterncomedy with Black. However,The Holidayactor was excited to be part of the project. He told MTV that he really liked the script,which was too weird. For the same reason, no one else was much interested in making the film.
Black revealed that he had many funny ideas to execute in the superhero suit. He joked about catching bad guys using green prophylactics. He shared withMTV:
I really liked the script that a friend of mine wrote. But nobody wanted to make it; it was too weird. I was going to be making all kinds of stuff. I was going to be capturing bad guys with green, giant prophylactics, some funny stuff.
However, Black admitted that fans didn’t want to go that way with the green superhero. In retrospect, Black’s comedy script would’ve worked better than what fans got. The project eventually went into the hands of Martin Campbell, who made the film withRyan Reynoldsin the lead. Reynolds went on to bash his worst superhero movie for the next decade or so.
Green LanternAlmost Destroyed Ryan Reynolds’s Career BeforeDeadpoolSaved It
Fans would agree that the only good thing that came out of the 2011 film was the relationship between Ryan Reynolds andBlake Lively. Reynolds revealed thathe became unhirable in Hollywoodafter starring in the DC superhero film. During a 2023Actors on Actorssession with Variety, he told Taraji P. Henson that he represented the death of the superhero genre for a while. He shared (via Variety):
I represented the death of the superhero for a while. After Green Lantern, I was pretty much unhirable.
The movie was so messed up in all departments, including the chemistry between an on-screen Reynolds and Lively. The story failed to interest the viewers and the special effects looked cartoonish. The film came with a massive budget at the time, almost costing $200 million. However, it could only earn $225 million at the worldwide box office (via Box Office Mojo).
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Ryan Reynolds came back stronger in the genre with his Marvel film,Deadpool. In his 2018 filmDeadpool 2, he even bashedGreen Lanternwhen he goes back in time to put a bullet through his real-life self to avoid committing to the film.
Green Lanternis now available for rent on AppleTV+.
Hashim Asraff
Senior Writer
Articles Published :3019
Hashim Asraff is a Senior Entertainment Writer at FandomWire, with over 2,800 articles published on celebrity culture, comic book movies, and major TV franchises. With a background in Sociology and a keen interest in pop culture, Hashim brings a unique lens to breaking news stories, character deep-dives, film rankings, and fan-driven perspectives.His coverage often includes the MCU, DCU, hit network shows, and celebrity profiles, giving readers a rich blend of entertainment and analysis. A longtime fan of crime and investigative series, Hashim has watched thousands of episodes of NCIS, Criminal Minds, Law & Order: SVU, Bones, Blue Bloods, and The RookieA passionate storyteller and wordsmith, Hashim has also worked as a ghostwriter and managed multiple social media handles. He brought his writing expertise to FandomWire to also pursue his lifelong love for cinema and television.
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