Superman star Nathan Fillion has passionately defended his character’s iconic hairstyle after the look was criticized by fans.
In the new superhero film, which came out Friday, the actor plays the DC Comics character Guy Gardner, a law enforcer who is also the Green Lantern. While playing the superhero, whose powers are derived from his sparkling green ring, Fillion wears a blonde bowl cut wig.
For months as various teasers and trailers were released leading up to the film’s release, viewers have said online that they don’t like this hairstyle.
However, Fillion has now defended the haircut, telling CNN Thursday that the look is “canon” to the original character in the DC Comics.
“I don’t think you can do a Guy Gardner without doing the hair. I think it would be a disservice,” he said.
According to Fillion, the hairstyle is not only “integral to the character,” but it also shapes the kind of persona that Gardner gives off.
“If you see a guy walking down the street with a bowl cut, that guy clearly doesn’t give a damn what you think about him. And that’s Guy Gardner,” The Rookie star added.
Fillion’s comments came after a slew of viewers expressed disappointment about his bowl cut in Superman.
“‘Ummm Guy Gardner is meant to look dumb with the bowl cut,’ I don’t care it still looks dumb,” one wrote in December, while another tweeted at the time: “Hyped for Nathan Fillion as a Lantern, but a bowl cut?”
“Wtf happened to Green Lantern. Why is his haircut so ridiculous?” a third wrote in May.
Still, many people agreed that the bowl cut was a big part of Fillion’s character.
“Guy Gardner’s Green Lantern looks terrible in the exact way he should. Comic accurate,” one tweeted in December
“It’s Guy Gardner. He’s supposed to have a bad haircut,” another wrote Thursday.
During an episode of HBO Max’s DC Studios Showcase Official Podcast in May, Fillion said his character’s hairstyle was discussed before the movie was filmed. However, he ultimately pushed for Gardner to have the bowl cut.
“There was some talk about some different types of things we were going to go,” he said. “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.’”
Following its release, Superman has received many positive reviews, with The Independent’s Clarisse Loughrey giving it four stars. She wrote that the film, which is directed by James Gunn and stars David Corenswet as Superman, would make fans “believe in superhero movies again.”
“Above all, Gunn’s Superman understands exactly how this character and this world should make us feel, that there’s always pride to be found in hope, however naive its pursuit might feel on a planet that kills empathy on the regular,” Loughrey wrote. “While one hand manoeuvres the chess pieces for Gunn’s rebooted vision of the DC universe, the other hand steadily draws focus back to its central notion of what it means to be a hero in a system run on vested interests.”
