Over the past couple of decades, it’s been rare for a superhero title to not dominate headlines. However, it’s been some time since a superhero film quite stole the spotlight as fervently as Spider-Man: Brand New Day, which took just 17 days to cross the $2 billion mark at the global box office, the second-fastest time in cinema history. With countless other records broken by the so-called “best Spidey adventure in 20 years,” it’s worth remembering that there is still the small matter of Avengers: Doomsday, which some are predicting will perform even better.
But it isn’t just the big screen where superhero series are dominating. Already this year, the likes of Spider-Noir, a live-action series serving as a spin-off to the animated Spider-Verse films, and the fifth and final season of Eric Kripke‘s acclaimed superhero satire The Boys have proven huge hits. Now, the latest superhero series to dominate streaming is HBO’s Lanterns, part of the DCU’s Chapter One: Gods and Monsters, with millions tuning in to witness the gritty tale of superhero Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler) and new recruit John Stewart (Aaron Pierre).
Created by Chris Mundy, Damon Lindelof, and Tom King, the series is considered the superhero version of True Detectiveand is earning plenty of praise from both fans and critics. For Collider, Michael John Petty awarded the series an 8/10, with ScreenRant‘s Felipe Rangel saying, “James Gunn’s DCU enters its brightest day.” Lanterns has now been the most-watched show on HBO Max in the U.S. for over two weeks, as well as currently holding the #1 position on the global charts. But Chandler’s isn’t the only Green Lantern currently proving a streaming hit.
Collider Exclusive · Sci-Fi Personality Quiz Which Sci-Fi Hero Are You Most Like? Paul Atreides · Captain Kirk · Princess Leia · Ellen Ripley · Max Rockatansky
Five iconic heroes. Five completely different ways of facing an impossible universe. One of them shares your instincts, your values, and your particular way of refusing to back down. Eight questions will tell you which one.
🏜️Paul Atreides
🖖Capt. Kirk
✊Princess Leia
🔦Ellen Ripley
🔥Max Rockatansky
01
How do you lead when the stakes couldn’t be higher? The way you lead under pressure is the most honest thing about you.
02
What is your greatest strength in a crisis? The quality that keeps you alive when everything else fails.
03
What is the thing you’d sacrifice everything else for? Your deepest motivation is your truest compass.
04
How do you relate to the people around you? Who you are to others under pressure is who you really are.
05
You’re facing a threat that no one else believes is real. What do you do? How you respond when you’re the only one who sees it defines everything.
06
What has your heroism cost you personally? Every hero pays. The question is what — and whether they’d pay it again.
07
How do you feel about the rules of the world you’re in? Every hero has a relationship with the system. What’s yours?
08
When everything is on the line, what keeps you going? The answer is the most honest thing about you.
Your Hero Has Been Identified Your Sci-Fi Hero Is…
Your answers point to the iconic sci-fi hero who shares your instincts, your values, and your particular way of facing the impossible.
Arrakis · Dune
Paul Atreides
You carry a weight most people would crumble under — the knowledge of what you’re capable of, and the burden of what you might have to become.
You see further ahead than others and you plan accordingly, even when the vision frightens you.
You are driven by loyalty to your people and a sense of destiny you didn’t ask for but can’t escape.
Paul Atreides is not simply a hero — he is someone who understands the cost of power and chooses to bear it anyway.
That gravity, that willingness to carry what others won’t, is exactly you.
USS Enterprise · Star Trek
Captain Kirk
You lead with instinct, warmth, and an absolute refusal to accept a no-win scenario — because you’ve always believed there’s a third option nobody else has thought of yet.
You take the mission seriously without ever taking yourself too seriously.
Your crew would follow you anywhere, not because you demand it, but because you’ve earned it.
Kirk’s genius isn’t tactical — it’s human. He reads people, bends rules with purpose, and wills outcomes into existence through sheer conviction.
That combination of warmth, audacity, and relentless optimism is unmistakably yours.
The Rebellion · Star Wars
Princess Leia
You are the kind of person who holds the line when everyone else is losing faith — not because you’re fearless, but because giving up simply isn’t something you’re capable of.
You lead through conviction. Your voice carries because your belief is unshakeable.
You gave up everything ordinary the moment you chose the cause, and you’ve never looked back.
Leia is not a supporting character in her own story — she is the moral centre of the entire rebellion.
That same fierce, principled, unbreakable core is what defines you.
The Nostromo · Alien
Ellen Ripley
You are not reckless, not grandiose, and not particularly interested in being anyone’s hero — you just refuse to stop when it matters.
You see threats clearly, you document the truth even when no one listens, and when the time comes you handle it yourself.
Ripley’s heroism is earned, not performed. She doesn’t have a speech — she has a flamethrower and a plan.
You share her composure under the worst possible pressure, and her refusal to pretend the monster isn’t there.
When it counts, you don’t flinch. That’s everything.
The Wasteland · Mad Max
Max Rockatansky
You have been through fire that would break most people — and what came out the other side is something the world underestimates at its peril.
You don’t ask for help, don’t need validation, and don’t wait for anyone to tell you the rules no longer apply.
Your loyalty, when it finally arrives, is absolute — but it’s earned in silence and tested in action, not in words.
Max is not a nihilist. He is someone who lost everything and found, against his will, that he still has something worth protecting.
That bruised, stubborn, ultimately human core is exactly yours.
Another ‘Green Lantern’ Is an HBO Max Hit
Resurrected by the popularity of Lanterns, Ryan Reynolds’ infamous performance as Hal Jordan in the 2011 film Green Lantern is currently the eighth most-watched movie on HBO Max in the U.S. The film was panned by critics and DC fans alike, receiving some of the worst reviews in the franchise’s history. It also flopped at the box office, only just returning its $200 million budget with a global haul of $219 million.
Both Lanterns and Green Lantern are streaming on HBO Max. Stay tuned to Collider for more streaming stories.
