Nathan Fillion Reveals He Insisted on the Bowl Cut for His Green Lantern Role in ‘Superman’

Nathan Fillion is stepping into the role of Green Lantern’s Guy Gardner in James Gunn’s upcoming Superman movie, and he had one very important request—his character had to have the famous bowl haircut.

In an episode of Max’s DC Studios Showcase Official Podcast, Fillion talked about how important the hairstyle was to him. While there were other looks considered for the role, the actor made it clear that he only wanted one thing: the classic comic-accurate bowl cut that Guy Gardner is known for.

“There was some talk about different hairstyles,” Fillion said. “There was some talk about some different types of things we were going to go… I was team bowl cut the whole way. It’s canon. It’s set. I said, ‘If we don’t do a bowl cut, we’re going to hear about it.’”

Fillion explained that the haircut is a key part of who the character is and that fans would have noticed if they changed it. However, he couldn’t actually cut his real hair that way because of another acting job that needed a more regular hairstyle.

“Now, here’s the thing,” he said. “I have another job with a boss who’s kind enough to let me out for other projects. But I think he would draw the line at a bowl cut police officer.”

Instead, Fillion wore a wig for the role.

This version of Superman will be the first time a live-action human Green Lantern has appeared on the big screen since 2011. Guy Gardner joins Superman and Mister Terrific as part of the new team of heroes in James Gunn’s rebooted DC Universe.

With Fillion’s strong support for keeping the look faithful to the comics, fans of Green Lantern can expect a fun and accurate take on the bold and brash Guy Gardner—bowl cut and all.

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