Lanterns Writer Tom King Explains Why [SPOILER] Got Away With Killing Hal Jordan

The "Lanterns" Season 1 finale finally revealed who killed Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler), a mystery that was set up in the show's first episode. In the end, Hal's murderer turns out to be none other than Sheriff Kerry Kane (Kelly Macdonald), who kills him after reveals that he knows her son, Noah, is part Manhunter. In another shocking twist, John Stewart (Aaron Pierre) lets Kerry off scot-free, since he doesn't think that Hal would have wanted her punished for the murder. 

That said, "Lanterns" co-creator/writer Tom King had a slightly different motivation for letting Kerry get away with killing Hal. "Someone committed a crime, they have to be punished ... so we had a big debate ... 'Does Kerry get punished,'" he told The Ringer-Verse in October 2026. "Like nothing could punish her more than the fact that she did that thing and she has to live with it ... Jail isn't worse than that."

For his part, Aaron Pierre understands the merciful side of John Stewart. "John is able to engage with grace and empathy, able to access a perspective and an understanding of someone's experience that he may not even personally be experiencing or sharing," Pierre said during a press conference (via The Wrap). "I think maybe not having that experience with a lot of those qualities extended to him, empathy or understanding of consideration or thoughtfulness, he's just one of these examples of he tries to put out there what he was always yearning for, in a way."

Unsurprisingly, the finale sparked a wave of spirited reactions from "Lanterns" fans, who couldn't wait to share their thoughts. Shortly after the Season 1 finale aired, many took to the r/LanternsTVSeries subreddit to discuss the shocking twist, with some clearly upset about Kerry's decision. "Everything we know about Kerry throughout the show does NOT point towards her being someone that would just kill someone...  much less the man she claims to love," wrote one user about the episode. Some users agreed, with many pointing out that Kerry's choice seemed to have come out of left field, while others argued that it felt like a natural result of the maternal instincts she'd previously shown in the series. Either way, one thing is for sure — fans are going to be arguing over this controversial TV finale for a long, long time to come.