Why Did John Stewart Reject the Green Lantern Ring and What Happens to the Ring in ‘Lanterns’?
‘Lanterns‘ just delivered the answer fans have been waiting for since the HBO Max series premiered, and it did not disappoint. Episode 5 finally reveals why John Stewart, played by Aaron Pierre, chooses to walk away from the Green Lantern ring despite spending his entire life training to wear it.
The decision reshapes everything viewers thought they understood about Stewart’s arc and also solves a mystery that has followed the DC Universe since ‘Superman’ hit theaters. If Hal Jordan and John Stewart both exist in this new continuity, why has Guy Gardner been the one wearing the ring all along.
Why John Stewart Turns Down the Green Lantern Ring
John Stewart rejected the Green Lantern ring in ‘Lanterns’ Episode 5 because wearing it left him feeling completely empty. He refused to lose himself the way Hal Jordan did while clinging to the ring’s power. Stewart had spent a lifetime imagining what it would feel like to finally earn that pride and recognition, only to find the reality far emptier than he expected.
Stewart witnessed firsthand how the ring corrupted Hal’s moral compass throughout their conflict in Rushville, and Hal betrayed his own code and oath to keep the ring, breaking himself in the process. That firsthand look at what obsession with the ring had done to his mentor gave Stewart every reason to fear the same fate awaited him.
The rejection also stemmed from how Stewart obtained the ring in the first place, since he beat Hal in a brutal fistfight at the motel and pried the ring from his unconscious hand. Taking the ring through violence and deception made the victory feel hollow rather than earned, which only reinforced his decision to walk away entirely.
Just before John places the ring on his own finger, Hal looks up at his successor and weakly asks whether it was worth it, and John’s face fills with something closer to shame than joy. Stewart resented the Guardians for forcing him into violence and deception to claim the ring, and he refused to work for a group he considered manipulative and self serving.
The Guardians’ Manipulation Pushes Stewart Away
After feeling manipulated by the Guardians of the Universe into taking Hal Jordan’s ring, Stewart rejects their offer to become the Green Lantern of Sector 2814. That betrayal of trust colors the entire final confrontation, turning what should have been a triumphant coronation into a bitter reckoning.
John’s origin in the HBO series marks one of the biggest departures from his comic book roots, since his father, John Stewart Sr., failed a test from the Guardians when Abin Sur’s ring was searching for a candidate and ultimately succumbed to fear. That failure eventually led a Guardian, played by Laura Linney, to reveal herself to John’s mother, Bernadette Stewart, striking a bargain that set John on his own path toward the ring.
One of the show’s writers has since revealed that the Power Ring’s own bias played a role in this messy legacy, noting that Bernadette should have been a candidate for the Green Lantern Corps herself. The writer explained that this idea of willpower and overcoming fear looks very different depending on where a person stands, since someone can be terrified walking through their own neighborhood every day and still keep walking anyway.
Framing the ring as a choice allows John to reclaim his autonomy, and it breaks the power that both the Guardians and his parents have held over him for so long. If he were to become a Green Lantern now, he would be doing so for his own reasons and no one else’s.
What Happens to the Ring After Stewart Walks Away
Stewart placed the ring on the bar and walked away from the Guardian after delivering his verdict. He told her that Hal betrayed everything to keep the ring, his code, the oath, even himself, and that it broke him, adding that Hal probably does not even remember why he wanted the damn thing in the first place. He then admitted that he no longer remembered why he wanted it either.
The final shot of the episode shows John walking away from the bar and leaving the ring behind while Rushville burns around him, an image that effectively sets the stage for someone else to eventually claim it. The final shot of the episode lingers on the ring itself, nestled on a table in a bar, giving viewers a great look at all its details before the credits roll.
At the end of Episode 5, the Lantern Corps is left without a protector on Earth, which inevitably paves the way for Guy Gardner to step into the responsibility John abandoned. This rejection left Earth without a Green Lantern protector, leading to Guy Gardner being chosen as the next Green Lantern for Earth’s sector.
How This Sets Up Guy Gardner’s Green Lantern Future
For years, fans of James Gunn’s DC Universe had a simple but nagging question, namely why Guy Gardner was the one wearing the ring in 2025’s ‘Superman’ if both Hal Jordan and John Stewart existed in this new continuity. Episode 5 of ‘Lanterns’ finally closes that loop in dramatic fashion.
With John rejecting the ring, ‘Lanterns’ has provided an explanation for how Guy Gardner could have gotten the job over Stewart. Interestingly, the ring shown in this final shot looks noticeably different from the one Nathan Fillion’s Gardner has worn in all of his appearances so far, leaving room for more story before Gardner ever puts it on.
The show now shifts entirely to its 2026 storyline, where Stewart investigates Hal Jordan’s mysterious death, with the question of how Stewart will eventually reclaim the ring remaining one of the series’ biggest unanswered mysteries. Even though John Stewart rejects the power ring here, it would be shocking if the series ends without him reclaiming it for himself, especially since he is confirmed to appear in ‘Man of Tomorrow.’
Considering how much John Stewart sacrificed just to watch the ring nearly destroy the man who wore it before him, do you think walking away made him more of a hero, or is Earth worse off without a Green Lantern until Guy Gardner steps in?
