‘Lanterns’ Is Quietly Becoming One of HBO’s Biggest DC Hits
When DC Studios announced a Green Lantern series, many fans wondered whether a cosmic superhero story could find its footing on prestige television. The show arrived with plenty of noise around it, from social media trolling to review-bombing and hate-watching. Yet as ‘Lanterns’ heads into its season finale, the viewership numbers are telling a very different story.
Created and co-written by Chris Mundy, Damon Lindelof, and Tom King, the series stars Aaron Pierre as John Stewart and Kyle Chandler as Hal Jordan. It premiered on August 16 and quickly established itself as the biggest premiere for a DC Studios show on HBO Max, as well as one of the top 5 series launches in the platform’s history.
The latest figures show the show’s audience is holding strong. According to Variety, the seventh episode reached 7 million viewers in the U.S. in its first 3 days, combining Nielsen’s measurement of linear HBO viewers with streams on HBO Max.
Even more impressive is the season average. The series has averaged above 12 million viewers per episode in the U.S., climbing to nearly 19 million once international viewing is factored in. The show is also still pulling in newcomers, with 1.5 million new viewers watching the premiere within the last week alone.
Episode 7 tied the show’s U.S. series high, matching the 7 million viewers that Episode 3 drew back in August. That third episode also averaged 10 million viewers globally in its first 3 days, which remains its best worldwide number.
No evil shall escape their sight.
— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) July 24, 2026
Watch the official trailer now. #Lanterns arrives August 16 on @hbomax. pic.twitter.com/PQdkto9G2R
Variety suggested the averages are likely to keep rising. The outlet pointed to ‘It: Welcome to Derry’, which drew 6.5 million U.S. viewers in 3 days with its most-watched episode, slightly fewer than the latest ‘Lanterns’ tally, before later reaching a global average of 19.7 million.
Still, ‘Lanterns’ has ground to cover against HBO’s top performers. Recent worldwide per-episode averages include ‘The Last of Us’ Season 2 at 37 million, ‘A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms’ at 36 million, and ‘House of the Dragon’ Season 3 at 33 million. HBO’s last DC series, ‘The Penguin’, was initially reported at 20 million before being updated to 27 million per episode months later.
Some observers have also noted that HBO didn’t provide a worldwide total for Episode 7, unlike its earlier viewership announcements. The strong numbers have sparked plenty of talk about the show’s future. James Gunn has stressed that the upcoming finale is a season finale and not a series ending, fueling speculation about a second season.
Beyond the ratings, the series has also been described as both a critical and viewership success for HBO and DC Studios. That’s a notable turnaround for a show that faced organized negativity online before audiences had a chance to judge it for themselves.
Supporters have been quick to celebrate the milestone online. DiscussingFilm’s post about the numbers racked up more than 3 million views, with one fan cheekily calling it the most generational comic book show of the year.
The final episode of the season drops this Sunday, and it could bring another boost to the show’s already strong averages. If ‘Lanterns’ follows the path of ‘It: Welcome to Derry’, its numbers may keep climbing long after the finale airs.
Do you think Lanterns deserves a second season?
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