Lanterns Now Averaging 12M U.S./19M Global Viewers Per Episode

Posted in: HBO, Max, Movies, TV | Tagged: lanterns

Lanterns Now Averaging 12M U.S./19M Global Viewers Per Episode

We have a feeling DC Studios is liking the numbers coming in for Aaron Pierre (John Stewart) and Kyle Chandler (Hal Jordan)-starring Lanterns.

Published Thu, 01 Oct 2026 17:25:10 -0500
by Ray Flook
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Article Summary

• Lanterns is averaging 12M U.S. viewers per episode and nearly 19M globally, marking a major HBO/DC Studios hit.
• Episode 7 drew 7M U.S. viewers in three days, while the series premiere added another 1.5M viewers this week.
• James Gunn fueled Lanterns Season 2 buzz by stressing the upcoming finale is a season finale, not a series ending.
• Lanterns Episode 7 also deepened DCU lore with Mogo confirmed and a darker new truth about Hal Jordan’s father.

Despite the social media trolling, review-bombing, and hate-watching (like we went through with HBO's Watchmen), Chris Mundy, Damon Lindelof, and Tom King's Aaron Pierre (John Stewart) and Kyle Chandler (Hal Jordan)-starring Lanterns is proving to be both a critical and viewership success story for HBO and DC Studios. With the season finale set to hit this weekend, the DCU series pulled in another 1.5 million viewers for the series premiere this week. Meanwhile, S01E07: "The Jordan Boys' Legacy" pulled in 7 million viewers in the U.S. during its first three days. Overall, Lanterns is averaging over 12 million viewers per episode to date in the U.S., and that grows to nearly 19 million when international viewing is included. In terms of viewers, here's how Lanterns tracks compared to a number of other previous HBO/HBO Max series' average (based on Nielsen's measurements):

• It: Welcome to Derry hit 6.5 million U.S. viewers in three days, ending with a global average of 19.7 million viewers.
• Euphoria hit 8.7 million global viewers in three days with the Season 3 finale, when the series was averaging 25 million per episode.
• The Pitt wrapped up the second season with 9.7 million finale viewers in the U.S. and a season average of 15.4 million viewers.
• The Penguin wrapped up its run, averaging more than 27 million viewers per episode.

DC Studios co-CEO and writer/director James Gunn definitely dropped a ten-ton hint that Season 2 is a reality (we already know that the writers' room has been mapping things out for a second season). After hyping up this Sunday's finale, Gunn was asked, "SEASON finale, correct?" To which Gunn replied, "Season finale, correct." If nothing else, Gunn is making sure no one is out there talking "series finale." Here's a look:

Lanterns S01E07: "The Jordan Boys' Legacy" – DCU Notes

Yup, Mogo's a Green Lantern Planet: Earlier this season, we learned that Hal's password to be able to access the power battery he had at his place in Coast City was "Mogo Doesn't Socialize," a direct reference to writer Alan Moore and artist Dave Gibbons' comic book creation, first appearing in Green Lantern (vol. 2) #188. During tonight's episode, Retro Hal quizzes John about who attended his funeral, asking whether Mogo did as well. When John tries claiming that Mogo stood beside him at Hal's gravesite, Retro Hal calls shenanigans, revealing that Mogo is a planet. Oh, and we didn't want to forget that we also got a reference to Ch'p.

Hal Jordan's Father Didn't Die by Accident: In the comic book universe, Hal's father was an Air Force test pilot and an employee of Ferris Aircraft who died during a mission – a tragedy that Hal witnessed, and that would haunt him his entire life. Driven by never knowing if his father died, feeling fear, Hal dedicated his life to bravery and fearlessness in his father's name. During the HBO series, Retro Hal reveals to John that his father took his own life, suffering from the same growing pains that his father suffered from – and Hal is destined to confront: "The Jordan Boys' Legacy." As Retro Hal explains to John, it wasn't that he was fearless; it was that he was broken.

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