HBO Max is doubling down on the controversial portrayal of John Stewart’s mother in Lanterns, suggesting that she should have received a Green Lantern ring herself.
The official HBO Max account shared a collection of clips from the DC Studios series featuring Bernadette Stewart, played by Jasmine Cephas Jones.
“Should’ve asked John’s mom to be the Green Lantern,” the streamer declared.
Should’ve asked John’s mom to be the Green Lantern. #Lanterns pic.twitter.com/xP2UXUyPsL
— HBO Max (@hbomax) September 3, 2026
While the comment could easily be dismissed as an aggressive attempt by the HBO Max social media team to drive engagement, the sequence of clips selected for the video appears to build a case for that exact argument.
HBO Max Highlights Bernadette’s Fearlessness
The montage begins with Bernadette confronting a Guardian of the Universe. When told that she has come face-to-face with intelligent life from another galaxy, she doesn’t flinch.
“Prove it,” she demands.
John Stewart in Lanterns – HBO Max
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Other clips show John Stewart’s mother pushing her husband to shoot an apple off their son’s head and coldly dismissing the adult John’s complaints about his upbringing.
Later, Bernadette is shown threatening her husband.
The final clip comes from the scene in which John Stewart Sr. is rejected by the Green Lantern ring for being afraid. Taken together, the clips appear deliberately chosen to portray Bernadette as exceptionally fearless.
Lanterns Writer Previously Made the Same Argument
The post is particularly notable because Lanterns writer and co-executive producer Vanessa Baden Kelly recently made essentially the same argument.
“The thing that I would always say in the room is that if the ring wasn’t sexist, Bernadette would have been chosen, because she really is just the most fearless of everybody,” Kelly said.
Her comments generated considerable controversy, both because women have served as Green Lanterns throughout DC Comics history and because of Bernadette’s actions throughout the episode.
Lanterns Writer Vanessa Baden Kelly – DC
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After learning that her infant son could someday become a candidate for the Green Lantern Corps, Bernadette dedicates herself to eliminating fear from John’s life.
Her methods include having John’s father shoot an apple off his head, leaving the boy alone in a dangerous neighborhood at night, and convincing him that birds are secretly reporting his behavior to the Guardians.
Nevertheless, the people behind Lanterns have repeatedly spoken glowingly about Bernadette.
Cephas Jones described the character as an “unsung hero” and “the superhero without the cape,” while J. Alphonse Nicholson, who portrays John Stewart Sr., credited Bernadette with helping shape John into the man he needed to become.
HBO Max Reinforces the Message
Some defenders of Lanterns have argued that Bernadette is deliberately presented as a complicated character and that audiences are not necessarily expected to approve of her treatment of John.
The main characters in DC’s Lanterns on HBO – X, @DiscussingFilm
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However, HBO Max’s latest promotional video makes that interpretation increasingly difficult to separate from the messaging surrounding the series.
The writer has called Bernadette the family’s most fearless member. The actress portraying her has called her a superhero. Now HBO Max has assembled a video highlighting her fearlessness and suggesting that she should have received the ring.
Whatever viewers ultimately conclude about Bernadette’s methods, the people creating and promoting Lanterns appear increasingly eager to make their own opinion of John Stewart’s mother clear.
Do you think John Stewart’s mother should have been Green Lantern? Sound off and let us know!
