Australia’s loss could be Canada’s gain as Warner Bros. Pictures and DC Comics pursue a new foreign location for Green Lantern, a $150 million comic-movie shoot.

Screen New South Wales, which worked closely with the Hollywood studio to lure the FX-heavy shoot to Fox Studios in Sydney, with the promise of 500 jobs, blamed the soaring Australian dollar compared to the American greenback for the studio pullout ahead of a November production start date.

‘We have also had to reassess film projects in other countries as well,’ Warner Bros. said in a statement issued through Screen NSW.

The studio, which has penciled in a December 2010 release for the movie, is now said to be scouting Canada and Mexico, with Canada considered more likely to grab the torch.

‘It’s a pretty sophisticated film in terms of the story and the location and the visual effects. I don’t think Mexico could handle that,’ says Hans Fraikin, head of the Quebec Film and Television Council.

Warner Bros. would also face an insurance risk in Mexico, given mounting social instability from drug cartels and gang warfare.

Also playing in Canada’s favor is homegrown actor Ryan Reynolds donning the comic book hero’s costume for the title role. Reynold’s last comic-book movie was 20th Century Fox’s X-Men Origins: Wolverine, which shot in Vancouver.

Despite the Canadian dollar surging towards parity, Ontario is following Quebec in touting its 25% tax credit to the major studios as an appealing offset.

‘Depending on the production, it is likely to represent a 50% increase or more,’ Ontario Media Development Corporation president and CEO Karen Thorne-Stone says of savings from Ontario’s enhanced foreign film tax credit.

‘When combined with the other strong incentives in Ontario, including the quality of talent, depth of crews, world-class studios, and award-winning animation, special effects and post-production capacity, Ontario is a more attractive location than ever,’ she adds.