It's DC comics' sixth major foray into the comics-to-movies cash-in scene, (Superman, Batman, Catwoman, The Spirit and forgotten effort The Swamp Thing). This time it's the Green Lantern who, for those not in the know, is a nice guy with a really fancy ring.

A ring so fancy, in fact, that it gives the holder unbelievably super powers, including, but not limited to: regeneration, size manipulation, firing plasma bolts, telepathy, flight (up to the speed of light), and, niftily, the ability to walk through walls. Its powers are only limited by "the willpower of the holder" - whatever that means - and since human wielder Hal Jordan is a test pilot with a strong personality, that's no real limit. Basically, it's really cool. You'll like it.

As one of the original comic creations from the 'Golden Age of Comic Books' (also known as 'the '40s'), the plot potential for the film is huge. Screenwriter Marc Guggenheim has said that, "The character is several decades old, so we've really had an incredible amount of source material to cherry-pick from." Clark Kent himself may have a cameo role, according to some script reviews, though this might get canned in the final draft.

Here's what we know about the plot - at least from early drafts of the script. Our man Ryan Reynolds will play the second incarnation of Mr Lantern, namely, Hal Jordan, a one-time test pilot who is given the all-powerful Ring and its charger - a lantern - by crashed and dying alien Abin Sur. The alien was attacked by supervillain Legion, and has to appoint a successor by giving the ring to someone "honest and born without fear" (in the comics; but that sounded too much like Daredevil, so it was later retconned to "someone who would overcome great fear"). We'll see a love interest in the form of his boss, Carol Ferris, with whom Jordan was on-again, off-again for a couple of decades. The Lantern who preceded the famous Jordan (actually the second incarnation of the character), Alan Scott, is rumoured to appear in the film working for the government, so that's nice too. Regular sidekicks Thomas Kalmaku, alien Tomar-Re and most of the Green Lantern Corps, an interplanetary group of heroes, are also set to appear.

Green Lantern fanboys would say, "Because it's about time" but movie producers would probably point to the huge opportunity to go nuts with special effects, what with Hal's ring being able to do pretty much anything (lasers, fireworks, time travel, and so on). Originally DC was planning a Justice League movie that could have introduced Green Lantern as part of a super-ensemble (with Batman, Supes, Wonder Woman and more) but with that mothballed for the moment, the time seems right to introduce Green Lantern on his own.

The Lantern's always been a slightly tougher proposition than, say, Batman or even Superman, because his mission involves much more to-ing and fro-ing of alien species from Earth, and involves the Lantern himself shooting off into the stars regularly. The suspension of disbelief required is consequently greater, but with the world's growing familiarity with comic-book heroes, and Lord of the Rings leading the way in making us comfortable with magic jewellery, a wider audience should now be ready for this film.

What's more, Ryan Reynolds' star is shining very brightly of late, stealing the show with limited screentime as Wade Wilson / Deadpool in X Men Origins: Wolverine, which was enough to get him a planned spin-off, as well as running all the way to the rom-com bank with The Proposal, which hit the number one spot in the US and has already passed the $100 million mark. More than that, he's proper buff, and would look flippin' ace in a green and black skin-tight onesie.

Also, it's a comic book adaptation, and as we all know, every single comic book character will eventually get his own feature length film at some point, including Mr Benn and Smiffy from the Bash Street Kids.

Ryan Reynolds confirmed as The Green Lantern

Carol Ferris

Hector Hammond

Well, there's Ryan Reynolds, a self-confessed ubergeek, as the eponymous hero. We're thrilled with this: he's an actor who - while oozing charisma and being one of the nicer guys in Hollywood - hasn't yet broken out or priced himself out of the comic book star bracket. A big question is what his casting as Jordan means for the mooted Deadpool spin-off movie, but we're hoping he can carry two franchises at once: Harrison Ford managed OK, albeit not for two ancient rivals like DC and Marvel.

Aside from that, all we have is rumours and sheer guesswork. For the love interest, Carol Ferris, some may be hoping that Reynolds persuades his incredibly attractive missus Scarlett Johansson to don a black wig and get involved. Considering her involvement in Marvel's robot-athon, Iron Man 2, however, chances are slim for a Brad and Angie-style affair.

The comic book drawing most closely resembles Megan Fox (but then most comic-book females resemble Megan Fox), but the grapevine tells us Australian actress Rose Byrne (Knowing, 28 Weeks Later) is hottest tipped for the role, and word is that she's director Martin Campell's (Casino Royale, GoldenEye) favourite too.

Potential bad guy roles come in the form of one Hector Hammond, a moustachioed badass, and Legion, an otherworldly Green Lantern killer. Who'll play who? Our hopes are pinned on the likes of Kevin Spacey or John Malkovich for Hammond (though this may just be because they can really rock a 'tache) and Legion... well, he'll be either buried under make-up or CGI most likely, so it's anyone's guess.

A release date is currently set for June 17, 2011 - which makes for a fairly tight schedule but should be do-able. That sets it a full month after Marvel's Thor, two weeks after Kung Fu Panda: The Kaboom Of Doom and a week before Cars 2 according to current release forecasts.

Australia. More specifically, Fox Studios in Sydney, no doubt due to the ongoing juicy tax breaks that Down Under are offering filmmakers these days. Locations required would include an air base (no worries mate), a desert (easy) and a jungle (check?).

The rest will, we imagine, be space-based, which could be recreated in the special effects offices of Anywheretown, Earth. But remember, Fox Studios Australia was the base of production for the latter two Star Wars prequels, so they're familiar with the final frontier already.