DC’s ‘Lanterns’ Creator Has Been Dissed By Alan Moore and Grant Morrison

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As a huge fan of TV and film, I’ve always been impressed by Damon Lindelof’s work. He gave us Lost, which was a total phenomenon and really changed the game for television in the 2000s. More recently, The Leftovers is honestly one of the best shows I’ve seen in years. And he’s tackled some massive sci-fi properties, writing for films like Prometheus, Star Trek Into Darkness, World War Z, and Tomorrowland. It’s also pretty wild to learn he somehow managed to upset both Alan Moore and Grant Morrison – two comic book legends! It just shows he’s not afraid to take risks and put his own stamp on things.

Alan Moore and Grant Morrison are considered two of the most important comic book writers of all time, known for groundbreaking works like Moore’s Swamp Thing and The Killing Joke, and Morrison’s run on titles like Doom Patrol and Animal Man. Moore’s Watchmen is particularly acclaimed, even appearing on TIME Magazine‘s list of the best novels of the 21st century, and his Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow remains highly influential. Morrison’s All-Star Superman is frequently cited as one of the best DC Comics ever written. Despite their success, both writers have publicly criticized Damon Lindelof’s adaptations of DC properties.

What Alan Moore and Grant Morrison Said About Damon Lindelof


HBO

Damon Lindelof wrote and produced the HBO miniseries Watchmen, but instead of retelling the story from the original graphic novel, it continued the narrative as a sequel. In 2022, Alan Moore, the creator of Watchmen, shared that Lindelof had written to him. Moore has consistently expressed his disapproval of DC Comics and their practice of holding onto the rights to the Watchmen characters, preventing him from regaining ownership.

Moore felt Lindelof’s letter came across as overly self-critical, and he suspected it was an effort to appeal to Moore’s known dislike of adaptations of his work. He didn’t appreciate the letter’s tone, specifically pointing out that Lindelof’s opening line – “Dear Mr. Moore, I am one of the bastards currently destroying Watchmen” – was a poor choice of words. Moore continued by saying:

The conversation quickly devolved into a strange and anxious back-and-forth. Someone asked how to pronounce “Ozymandias,” which prompted a sharp and likely unfriendly response from me. I told them Warner Bros. should know better than to contact me, ever, and that I no longer considered the work theirs. I explained that the film and comic book adaptations had strayed so far from my original creation that they were essentially unrelated, but would unfortunately be linked to it publicly. I finished by saying I was ashamed of the association and asked them not to contact me again.

Four years later, while promoting his show Lanterns, Lindelof clashed with Grant Morrison, the writer who created the Kyle Rayner Green Lantern and later wrote about Hal Jordan in the Green Lantern comic (2018-2021). Lindelof explained they titled the series Lanterns instead of Green Lantern because everyone involved felt the word ‘Green’ was unnecessary.

Grant Morrison responded to Lindelof’s statements by questioning why he’d take on the Green Lantern project if he disliked the source material so much. Morrison also wondered what Lindelof was trying to achieve with his dismissive attitude towards superhero tropes, suggesting it didn’t change perceptions of him as a fan. Ultimately, Morrison felt Lindelof was unnecessarily alienating the very people who were most invested in the show – Green Lantern fans – and called it a misguided approach.

Does Any of This Criticism Matter?


HBO

Damon Lindelof receiving criticism from legendary DC Comics writers isn’t ideal, but ultimately, it doesn’t say much about the quality of his work. Despite Alan Moore’s lack of involvement, Lindelof successfully turned what many thought was a risky idea into one of the most praised DC TV series ever. Watchmen received overwhelmingly positive reviews, boasting a 96% score on Rotten Tomatoes, and earned an impressive 26 Primetime Emmy nominations. Lindelof even won an Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Limited Series alongside Cord Jefferson for the episode “The Extraordinary Being.”

It’s still too soon to say how Lanterns will be received. The initial trailer received a mixed response, largely because the show’s detective-focused style—similar to True Detective—is a departure from the large-scale cosmic story found in the original comics. However, recent DC Universe releases like Creature Commandos, Superman, and Season 2 of Peacemaker have created positive excitement, suggesting people will still give Lanterns a chance. The show’s visual style, reminiscent of Yellowstone, could also attract viewers who enjoy detective shows and might be a good way to introduce them to the broader DCU universe.

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It’s hard to tell if Lindelof was being genuine or playful when he discussed Lanterns. But he wouldn’t be the first creator to successfully adapt source material they weren’t initially enthusiastic about. Tim Burton, for example, wasn’t a big comic book fan, but he loved the imagery of Batman and created a memorable version of the character. Similarly, Francis Ford Coppola didn’t particularly like Mario Puzo’s The Godfather novel before turning it into a cinematic masterpiece. Even Stephen King dislikes Stanley Kubrick’s adaptation of The Shining, despite it being widely considered a horror classic. Ultimately, the quality of the story itself is what truly matters, not how closely it follows the original.



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2026-03-17 02:03