Tag: Lanterns

Kelly Macdonald Starred in Acclaimed Steve Buscemi HBO Series Before Lanterns

Kelly Macdonald’s Boardwalk Empire Legacy Sets Stage for DC’s Lanterns Role

Before stepping into the DC Universe as Sheriff Kerry Kane on HBO’s upcoming Lanterns series, Kelly Macdonald delivered one of television’s most nuanced performances on Boardwalk Empire. The Prohibition-era drama, which aired from 2010 to 2014, showcased Macdonald as Margaret Thompson (née Schroeder), an Irish immigrant navigating power, morality, and survival in Atlantic City’s criminal underworld.

From Widow to Businesswoman: Margaret Thompson’s Complex Arc

Macdonald joined the main cast in her first major television role, working alongside Steve Buscemi’s Nucky Thompson — a corrupt politician building an empire on illegal bootlegging. Their relationship begins under dark circumstances: Nucky arranges the death of Margaret’s abusive husband, a fact concealed from her. The two eventually marry, but their union fractures as Nucky’s criminal enterprises escalate and Margaret confronts the moral cost of their lifestyle.

The character’s evolution spans five seasons, transforming from a vulnerable widow into a calculating businesswoman who ultimately secures financial independence at an investment firm. This layered portrayal earned Macdonald an Emmy nomination in 2011, while the series itself collected 20 Emmy wins during its run.

Macdonald on Margaret’s Moral Ambiguity

Reflecting on the character’s contradictions in a 2012 Rolling Stone interview, Macdonald articulated what made Margaret so compelling:

“She’s just got this streak of goodness in her, and she wants to help where she can,” the Scottish actress said, “and sometimes though, it’s helping her more than it’s helping others, so there is that side to her as well. She can be quite … devious and unpleasant in order to get what she wants.”

The quote captures the duality that defined Margaret’s journey — charitable impulses intertwined with ruthless self-preservation, a dynamic that made her one of the series’ most unpredictable figures.

HBO Reunion with Green Lantern Series

Macdonald’s casting in Lanterns marks a return to HBO, now under the DC Studios banner. Executive produced by Martin Scorsese, Boardwalk Empire launched her television career; Lanterns positions her within a new franchise framework. For viewers discovering Macdonald through her DC debut, Boardwalk Empire remains essential viewing — a masterclass in character development across five seasons of prestige drama.

09/11/2026
Lanterns Reveals Manhunter: Biggest Clues to the Truth Explained

In the fourth episode of Lanterns, the series resolves one of its central mysteries: the identity of the Manhunter hiding in Rushville, Nebraska. After a series of red herrings — including Hector Hammond (Jason Manuel Olazabal), real name Hector Gutierrez, and William Macon (Garret Dillahunt) — the reveal lands on Zoe Macon (Poorna Jagannathan), William’s wife and John Stewart’s (Aaron Pierre) occasional confidant and romantic partner.

Poorna Jagannathan in “Lanterns.” Credit: John Johnson / HBO Max

Zoe Macon Revealed as the Manhunter

The episode cycles through suspects before confirming that Zoe has been operating in plain sight. Her immediate intimacy with John Stewart served as the most significant clue. With two Green Lanterns arriving in Rushville, Zoe faced a direct threat to her cover. Rather than confront them with force, she pursued a calculated strategy: getting close to John to earn his trust. Given that both John and Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler) consistently used male pronouns when discussing the hidden Manhunter, it appears neither suspected a woman until the reveal.

Key Clues That Hinted at Zoe’s True Identity

The Romantic Deception Strategy

Episode 4 intensifies the pressure on Zoe’s relationship with John. During a visit to his motel, she frames their encounter as a final goodbye, insisting his only options after confronting Macon are leaving town or dying. She pushes hard for his departure, and when he refuses, she escalates by faking her own death — sending John and Hal on a wild-goose chase toward Hector Hammond.

This manipulation aligns with a pivotal line from Antaan (Paul Ben-Victor), who shares his own experience with a Manhunter. He asks John:

“Have you ever been deceived by someone you love?”

While John and Zoe’s connection may not reach “love,” Antaan’s point holds: the Manhunter exploits romantic intimacy to deceive someone the target is deeply close to.

Macon’s Complicity and the Nurse Backstory

Zoe’s dynamic with William Macon offers further foreshadowing. Macon is aware of the affair yet never retaliates against Zoe or John beyond verbal jabs. For a man who commands a private militia, such restraint is uncharacteristic — unless Zoe holds the upper hand and her infidelity is part of a deliberate plan to divert the Lanterns’ attention.

Macon recounts how he met Zoe: she was a nurse treating his cancer, and shortly after, a mysterious, god-like benefactor cured him. The implication is strong that Zoe herself was that benefactor. As Hal tells John, Manhunters are programmed to exploit societal weak points. A nurse treats people at their most vulnerable, positioning Zoe to build trust throughout Rushville. The town’s empty hospital suggests she cured everyone, proving her power and placing the community in her debt.

What This Means for Rushville

Beyond Macon, his men, and likely Sheriff Kerry Kane (Kelly Macdonald), the question remains: how much of Rushville knows they have an alien benefactor among them? And what lengths will they go to protect her now that her cover is blown?

Where to Watch Lanterns

Lanterns is now streaming on HBO Max, with new episodes premiering Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and HBO Max.

SEE ALSO: ‘Lanterns’ review: Kyle Chandler and Aaron Pierre shine bright in DC’s sci-fi mystery

09/06/2026
Did Lanterns Just Introduce the DC Supervillain Atrocitus?

Lanterns Episode 2 revealed the show’s biggest threat: a secret Manhunter hiding in Rushville, Nebraska. The episode may also have quietly introduced another major Green Lantern supervillain.

Did Lanterns introduce Atrocitus?

Episode 2 marks the first appearance of Antaan (Paul Ben-Victor), the leader of the aliens killed at the Rushville football game. Antaan and his men kidnap Green Lantern trainee John Stewart (Aaron Pierre) and explain how the Manhunter hiding in Rushville wiped out their people.

Ben-Victor’s casting announcement described Antaan as “an extraterrestrial devoted to exposing the truth and exacting vengeance against those who wronged his people. Consumed by a deep and unrelenting hatred for the law, he is determined to deliver justice on his own terms.”

Green Lantern fans on social media quickly noticed that the description sounded like another major Green Lantern villain: Atrocitus.

Like Antaan in Lanterns, Atrocitus, once known as Atros, is an alien whose entire sector was destroyed by the Manhunters. He and the four other survivors of the catastrophe dedicated themselves to taking down the Guardians of the Universe, who created the Manhunters in an attempt to establish a cosmic peacekeeping force.

Atrocitus eventually becomes the first Red Lantern and the leader of the Red Lantern Corps. Unlike the Green Lanterns, whose power rings are fueled by willpower, the Red Lanterns channel anger.

What separates Antaan from Atrocitus?

Antaan’s introductory episode neither confirms nor rules out the possibility that he is Atrocitus. His backstory aligns with Atrocitus’ history, but there are also several discrepancies. His name is the most obvious difference, and he has more than four fellow survivors from his world with him.

Until Antaan abandons his human disguise and transforms into a giant red rage monster, the Atrocitus theory remains unconfirmed.

Lanterns is now streaming on HBO Max, with new episodes premiering Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and HBO Max.

08/23/2026
Who Is the Secret Manhunter in Lanterns? Let’s Investigate

Lanterns has launched a Manhunter manhunt, and the HBO series has already introduced several possible suspects.

As revealed in Episode 2, Manhunters are a synthetic alien race capable of creating entirely new bodies, disguising themselves as anyone and embedding themselves undetected within any society.

Alien Antaan (Paul Ben-Victor) tells Lantern trainee John Stewart (Aaron Pierre) that Manhunters are brutal and deceptive, with the power to wipe out entire species, including Antaan’s own. He says his people lost their world to the last remaining Manhunter. A Green Lantern captured that Manhunter and promised he would be executed, but the alien is still alive and hiding in Rushville.

Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler) suspects that his predecessor, Abin Sur, was the Green Lantern who captured the Manhunter—and that the Manhunter ultimately killed him.

Now Hal and John have just 48 hours to find the Manhunter and hand him over to Antaan. If they fail, the aliens will destroy all of Rushville. With so little time to investigate the town’s entire population, the pair may need to focus on the residents viewers have already met. Here are the leading Manhunter suspects, ranked from least likely to most likely.

William Macon

Garret Dillahunt in Lanterns. Credit: John Johnson / HBO Max

As one of Rushville’s most powerful figures, William Macon (Garret Dillahunt) appears to be an obvious Manhunter candidate. He has built a militia to protect the town from alien threats, complete with advanced technology such as the alien detectors Hal discovers at the football field.

Macon has repeatedly claimed that his precautions are designed to protect humans from colonizing aliens. But they could also alert a hidden Manhunter that vengeful aliens are approaching.

Even so, Macon may be too obvious a suspect and could simply be a red herring. When Antaan described the destruction of his people, he said it happened “quietly.” Macon’s highly visible militia operation is anything but quiet, making him a less likely candidate.

Sheriff Kerry Kane

Kelly Macdonald in Lanterns. Credit: John Johnson / HBO Max

Antaan refers to the Manhunter as “he,” but the alien can take any form and could just as easily be disguised as a woman. That puts Rushville Sheriff Kerry Kane (Kelly Macdonald) in the running.

Kane repeatedly tries to steer Hal and John away from the alien activity surrounding Rushville. She could be covering for herself—or protecting someone she works for.

Episode 2 also reveals that Kane is from Gotham. Her status as an outsider could provide the perfect cover for a Manhunter who came from far beyond Nebraska and embedded itself in the community. If Kane is not the Manhunter, however, the series still has to explain what brought her from Gotham to rural Nebraska.

Zoe Macon

Poorna Jagannathan in Lanterns. Credit: John Johnson / HBO Max

Zoe Macon (Poorna Jagannathan) remains one of Lanterns‘ biggest mysteries. She is an alluring figure who begins an affair with John, while her husband appears to know about the relationship without retaliating. That suggests a complicated arrangement or power dynamic that the series is gradually revealing.

Zoe’s unclear loyalties make her a compelling Manhunter suspect, as does her romantic connection to John. When Antaan describes his own encounter with the Manhunter, he asks, “Have you ever been deceived by someone you love?”

The question suggests that the Manhunter does not simply destroy its targets. Instead, it may form deep connections before undermining them. It is too early to know whether Zoe and John are falling in love, but their affair could be part of a larger manipulation. What better way to protect yourself from a Green Lantern hunting you than to get close to him and earn his trust?

William Macon’s Mysterious Benefactor

Throughout the first two episodes, Macon has said that his militia, compound and advanced technology are all funded by a mysterious benefactor. Macon refuses to identify the person, saying only that the benefactor is generous and determined to keep aliens away from Rushville.

Someone with that level of technology and interest in alien surveillance could potentially be the Manhunter. Hal is convinced that Macon is hiding something at his compound. But what if that something is actually someone—the Manhunter who serves as Macon’s benefactor?

The benefactor could also be hiding in plain sight as someone such as Kane, Zoe or even Macon himself, while concealing the true source of Macon’s wealth. For now, Lanterns offers one clear rule: trust no one in Rushville.

Lanterns is streaming on HBO Max. New episodes premiere Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and HBO Max.

08/23/2026