Eagle-eyed fans may have spied a very famous face firing an energy beam out of a shiny-looking ring in the new trailer for “Superman.” Believe it or not, that’s actor Nathan Fillion — of “The Rookie,” “Castle,” and numerous other series — as Guy Gardner. But why does he look so different in the teaser compared to how he appears on the red carpet? Because he’s not only sporting Gardner’s signature carrot-colored bowl cut — which isn’t too far off from this hilarious fan art of Fillion as Gardner — but he also appears to be wearing a bit of makeup to better replicate Gardner’s square-jawed good looks.
Guy, of course, is a member of DC Comics’ Green Lantern Corps, and one of its most brash members. A soldier who has a bit of a “my way or the highway” attitude, Guy cares about Earth in spite of his flaws and wants to make sure the people living there survive and thrive. But he can also be prickly, arrogant and a bit smug. And those are just the sorts of personality quirks that Fillion was looking forward to exploiting when he embarked upon playing Guy in “Superman.”
Nathan Fillion is excited to explore Guy Gardner’s flaws
Although he made his DC Comics debut in 1968, Guy Gardner is very much a 1980s superhero; when the Cold War was raging, he tried to invade the Soviet Union all by himself. He’s also the kind of guy who once challenged Batman to a fistfight (and lost with a single punch). It’s those kinds of lovably confident but questionable brand of superhero antics that fans can look forward to upon meeting this live-action version of Guy for the first time.
Guy’s reputation as the bad boy of the Green Lanterns is one of the reasons Nathan Fillion wanted to play him. “Guy Gardner is 90% flawed and doesn’t care. That’s one of his flaws. I think there’s a real freedom in playing that. So, for a guy who likes to play flaws and flawed people, Guy Gardner is a gold mine,” Fillion told Collider about taking on the role. Audiences will find out how much fun Fillion had with Guy’s over-the-top ways — and whether Fillion’s take on this likably awful character is perfect for James Gunn’s “Superman” — when the movie hits theatres on July 11, 2025.
