HBO's Lanterns Replacement Is Coming To Show Marvel & DC How It's Done

Published Nov 10, 2026, 8:00 PM EST

Faith Roswell is a Senior Writer on Screen Rant's Classic TV team. Since earning her degree in Creative Writing over a decade ago, Faith has written articles on film and TV from a variety of different angles. Faith now combines her knowledge of psychology with her love of monster movies to give more insight into what makes the best ones. 

You may have read her Screen Rant lists and features covering horror, sci-fi, and fantasy, or read her Amazon Top 10 book, "Movie Monsters of the Deep."

Faith has had an extensive career as a writer, appearing on BBC live radio, researching true crime for Rotten Mango podcast, and writing for publications including Mental Floss, Atlas Obscura, and The Daily Jaws before beginning here at Screen Rant. 

Film noir has been undergoing a revival in recent years, but despite critics and viewers' faith in many of the best neo-noir TV shows available, it appears that executives have not shared this optimism. Despite a 92% critics' rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a powerhouse performance by Nicolas Cage, Spider-Noir was canceled after just one season, and now that there has been a shake-up at DC with James Gunn's exit, it appears that season 2 of Lanterns may not be going ahead. Fortunately, there is hope for noir fans with HBO's returning series.

HBO's detective anthology masterpiece, True Detective, has never quite lived up to its first season, which featured a Lovecraftian tone and fantastically weird performances by Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson. Every season of True Detective has attempted to recreate this atmosphere ever since, but the series has enjoyed mixed success. However, casting Nicolas Cage in the upcoming fifth season of True Detective is a stroke of genius that could get the series back on track while showing both Marvel and DC comic universes how it's done.

True Detective Season 5 Will Prove Prime Video Lost Out By Canceling Spider-Noir

Image via MovieStillsDB

Spider-Noir was an immense creative risk for the Marvel universe, taking the bright colors and logically cartoonish atmosphere usually associated with Spider-Man into the gritty backstreets and smoky bars of 1930s New York City, even giving fans the option to watch the entire series in black and white. With Nicolas Cage's hardboiled detective character, the show's sharp writing, and exciting genre mix being praised by critics and audiences, it appeared to only be a matter of time before Spider-Noir season 2 was announced. Unfortunately, this was not to be.

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Nicolas Cage has broken his silence on Spider-Noir's cancelation, citing creative differences over the use of AI, but the decision not to make a second season was also rumored to be due to low viewership, despite the show earning 11 Emmy Award nominations and reaching 2.6 billion minutes viewed within its first six weeks on Prime Video. Now, with Cage moving onto True Detective to star alongside Antonio Banderas, his exaggerated performance style and willingness to take on weird characters can only be a good thing for the series, which can incorporate elements of Spider-Noir into its already dark tone.

No matter how good Spider-Noir was, it was never going to please every fan of the original Spider-Man as its tone was such a drastic departure from its original style. That said, it is far from the only franchise that has branched out by reaching new viewers with more creative projects, and Nicolas Cage was the perfect actor to carry the show. The series could have become a flagship for Prime Video, but now, the fifth season of True Detective can give Nicolas Cage the role he was born to play.

Lanterns Was The Student; Now HBO Brings Back The Master

Imagevia MovieStillsDB

True Detective has inspired TV shows from Fargo to Mare of Easttown, but some may be surprised to learn that DC's Lanterns TV show was also heavily influenced by the iconic series. In a similar manner to Spider-Noir, Lanterns reshaped the Green Lantern superhero aesthetic, turning the story into a dark and gritty crime thriller with a film noir tone. Like Spider-Noir, Lanterns also earned a 92% positive Rotten Tomatoes rating from critics, and was praised for its change in style. Now, even if Lanterns season 2 does not happen, HBO is set to provide the perfect replacement.

Comparing the first seasons of True Detective, Spider-Noir, and Lanterns
Title	Year	Rotten Tomatoes critics' rating	Rotten Tomatoes audience rating
True Detective	2014	91%	93%
Spider-Noir	2026	92%	89%
Lanterns	2026	92%	67%

Lanterns focused on the psychological toll of wearing the ring over flashy visuals and CGI, and centered its mismatched detective partnership just as True Detective's first season did. Fans of this more grounded approach can now keep an eye out for True Detective season 5, especially if they missed the show when it first aired. Details for the upcoming series have been kept under wraps so far, but the casting and New York setting suggest that the series is returning to its season 1 roots, showing Lanterns how it could have continued.

True Detective