After “Black Adam,” we have the “Blue Beetle.”
The latest entry out of the old DC Extended Universe guard, prior to James Gunn and Peter Safran taking over as co-CEOs of the DCU, marks Xolo Maridueña’s first leading big-screen role. The “Cobra Kai” breakout plays Jamie Reyes, aka the Blue Beetle, who acquires superpowers after coming into contact with an extraterrestrial Scarab. Susan Sarandon stars as the super-villain mastermind trying to steal the military-grade Scarab, along with her goons.
In the film, recent college grad Jaime Reyes returns home full of aspirations for his future, only to find that home is not quite as he left it. As he searches to find his purpose in the world, fate intervenes when Jaime unexpectedly finds himself in possession of an ancient relic of alien biotechnology: the Scarab. When the Scarab suddenly chooses Jaime to be its symbiotic host, he is bestowed with an incredible suit of armor capable of extraordinary and unpredictable powers, forever changing his destiny as he becomes the superhero Blue Beetle.
“Blue Beetle” is rounded out by George Lopez, Harvey Guillén, Bruna Marquezine, Belissa Escobedo, Adriana Barraza, Elpidia Carrillo, Damián Alcázar, and Raoul Trujillo, who plays villain Carapax the Indestructible Man. The comic book movie is directed by Angel Manuel Soto from a script penned by Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer.
The first trailer for “Blue Beetle” captured the origin story behind the character that was created in 2006 for the “Infinite Crisis” comic book storyline. The standalone film was announced in 2021 and originally slated for then-titled streaming platform HBO Max prior to Warner Bros. opting for a summer theatrical release.
The fate of the Blue Beetle character was hinted at during a January 2023 press event, during which DC co-CEO Gunn assured that the DCU is not going to be a “Marvel 2.0.”
Fellow executive Safran added, “There’s no reason why any of the characters and the actors playing those characters are not part of the DCU going forward.”
To note, Dwayne Johnson’s Black Adam is no longer moving forward in the franchise, and “Wonder Woman 3” with Gal Gadot was scrapped.
“Blue Beetle” premieres August 18 from DC and Warner Bros. Check out the trailer below.
