By Carly Lane Published Sep 27, 2026, 10:05 PM EDT Carly Lane is an Atlanta-based writer and critic who has been with Collider in some form or fashion since 2021. She considers herself a television nerd, diehard romance/sci-fi/fantasy reader, and nascent horror lover. Her fondness of books is only eclipsed by the towering TBR that her shelves can't possibly contain. She is the author of A REGENCY GUIDE TO MODERN LIFE: 1800s ADVICE ON 21ST CENTURY LOVE, FRIENDS, FUN AND MORE , published through DK Books (an imprint of Penguin Random House) and currently available wherever books are sold. Sign in to your Collider account Add Us Like Like follow Follow followed Followed Listen Thread Log in Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents: Try something different: Show me the facts Explain it like I’m 5 Give me a lighthearted recap Editor's note: The below interview contains spoilers for Lanterns Episode 7.
HBO's Lanterns only has one more week left to go, and with its 2016 storyline officially wrapped up, the DCU series has jumped ahead by a decade, making quiet strides toward resolving a mystery that's been hanging over the show from the beginning: who killed Hal Jordan ( Kyle Chandler )?
Despite being summoned back to Rushville by Sheriff Kerry Kane ( Kelly Macdonald ), what John Stewart ( Aaron Pierre ) knows — and what the show ultimately reveals — is that Hal and John's last conversation took place hours before Hal turned up dead on those bleachers. Before that, Hal had actually been trying to make amends for what happened in Rushville 10 years prior, even though the townspeople, including Kerry's now-ex Billy Macon ( Jason Ritter ), still carry a lot of resentment towards the Green Lantern and everything that went down. While the show continues to creep closer to confirming the identity of Hal's murderer, it does shine a spotlight on the fact that Rushville has been forever changed by the events of 2016.
Ahead of the Lanterns premiere, Collider had the opportunity to speak with several members of the cast and creative team, including Macdonald and Ritter. Over the course of the interview, which you can watch above or read below, the co-stars discuss playing several versions of Kerry and Billy over different points in time, Kerry's emotional Episode 7 reunion scene with the Halogram, why Billy unwisely decides to pick a fight with John Stewart, and more.
COLLIDER: Kelly, the show is primarily set around two distinct timelines, but for Kerry, we do get a glimpse of what life was like for her before Rushville. I was wondering how learning about her history in Gotham and what she's been through prior to ending up in Rushville helped you develop a stronger understanding of her character.
KELLY MACDONALD: I don't have too much information aside from the fact that she's from Gotham. There are people that want to kill her, and she makes... not a deal with the devil, but she signs her life over basically to Rushville and to being there and protecting it, and it ends up being her family. So, yeah, I think it is quite important.
It was really nice to actually film a slightly younger Kerry, and sort of see her, like, she’s a bit gothy. They gave me little bangs, and I got makeup. It was really fancy.
Jason, I feel like I'm not the only person that's going to be thinking of Matlock when Billy first walks in. Your first official scene in Lanterns , that really funny courtroom scene, and the interaction that you and Kyle [Chandler] are ha…