Of all the DC series Geoff Johns has written, none has seen more growth than Green Lantern. Under Johns' pen, the Green Lantern mythos has evolved with new concepts such as the emotional spectrum and the resurrection of Hal Jordan. Johns also created several new characters such as Simon Baz and Jessica Cruz, both of whom wield Green Lantern.
In an exclusive interview with CBR, Johns spoke on the creation of Simon and Jessica, specifically in how his heritage ended up influencing the latter. "With Simon, my dad's Lebanese, my family is Lebanese, and there's a huge Arabic and Lebanese population in Detroit," Johns said. "And there was a lot of interesting, especially post-9/11, cultural fears that could be dealt with through that character and so Simon was born from that. And I like the character, he's a little rough-and-tumble; he's not perfect. He's got a lot of flaws, but he has a great heart."
Regarding Jessica, Johns talked about her struggle with anxiety and depression, and how she overcame that. "And then, on Jessica's side, it's about fear; a lot of emotional fears and someone that was dealing with crippling anxiety and depression and worry," he explained. "That was a totally different type of fear to tackle, and Jessica Cruz embodied that by first having the ring be a curse -- from [Earth-3's] Power Ring -- and her overcoming that and overcoming her own fears and her own personal issues to earn a Green Lantern ring. I felt it was a compelling story and a very different one than the other Lanterns."
Both Simon and Jessica would play a substantial role in Johns' stories, particularly his run on the New 52 versions of Green Lantern and Justice League.