‘Lanterns’ Sets ‘Slow Horses’ Helmer James Hawes to Direct First Block of Episodes (Exclusive)

A director for the DC Studios and HBO’s much-ballyhooed series Lanterns has been found.

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James Hawes, an established TV helmer who most recently directed a string of episodes of the Gary Oldman spy series Slow Horses , has been tapped to helm the first two episodes of the sci-fi cop series.

Lanterns is said to have a gritty, True Detective vibe and follows Hal Jordan, a legend amongst the space police force known as the Green Lanterns, as he reluctantly mentors a younger Green Lantern, John Stewart. The two intergalactic cops get drawn into a dark, Earth-based mystery as they investigate a murder in the American heartland.

The show is in the midst of casting the final of its two leads. Kyle Chandler is set to star as the classic and long-running Lantern Jordan. HBO and DC have narrowed down the search for Stewart to Rebel Ridge star Aaron Pierre and The Piano Lesson actor Stephan James. Sources say screen tests with the two happened Thursday and continue into Friday.

Lanterns has a straight-to-series order at HBO and comes from high-pedigreed creators. Chris Mundy ( Ozark ), Damon Lindelof ( Watchmen , Lost ) and Eisner Award-winning comic book writer Tom King are executive producing and writing, with Mundy showrunning what is planned as an eight-episode season. Hawes also joins the force as an exec producer.

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Hawes is a British director who has numerous episodes of tense thrillers under his belt. He worked on Showtime’s pulpy Penny Dreadful , Spike TV’s The Mist , serial killer show The Alienist , AMC’s Snowpiercer , and anthology series Black Mirror , among other shows.

He made his feature directorial debut last year with One Life , a true life tale of Sir Nicholas “Nicky” Winton, that starred Anthony Hopkins as the British man who saved hundreds of children during World War Two.

He is repped by CAA, UK’s 42, and Johnson Shapiro.

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