DC's bringing a new face to the big screen in Blue Beetle, one of the last 'Worlds of DC movies' to release before the big refresh under James Gunn and Peter Safran's new plans for DC superheroes, and it's now in theaters.
This time, we're introduced to DC's first Latino superhero in the form of Jaime Reyes, a youngster (played by Cobra Kai's Xolo Maridueña) who gains his superpowers from a bizarre piece of alien technology known as the Scarab.
Per the first trailer, Reyes gains his powers after finding an electric blue beetle stashed inside a take-out box that he's instructed to keep safe. The beetle promptly attaches itself to his body and transforms him into the titular superhero right before his family's eyes, bestowing all kinds of extraordinary abilities upon him.
Blue Beetle's promo material made it look like one of the most action-packed new movies of 2023. Here's what you need to know about Blue Beetle.
Blue Beetle release date: When is Blue Beetle in theaters?
Blue Beetle is now in theaters, after receiving a wide release on Friday, August 18.
Blue Beetle cast
Along with Xolo Maridueña in the title role (and his powered-down alter ego, Jaime Reyes), the Blue Beetle cast list includes:
- Belissa Escobedo (Hocus Pocus 2) as Milagros Reyes, Jaime's younger sister
- Elpidia Carrillo (Predator) as Rocio Reyes, Jaime's mother
- Damían Alcázar (Narcos) as Alberto Reyes, Jaime's father
- Adriana Barraza (Rambo: Last Blood) as Nana, Jaime's grandma,
- Bruna Marquezine (Breaking Through) as Jenny Kord
- George Lopez (The George Lopez Show) as Rudy Reyes, Jaime's uncle
- Raoul Max Trujillo (Sicario) as Conrad Carapax
- Susan Sarandon (replacing Sharon Stone) as Victoria Kord
- Harvey Guillén (What We Do In The Shadows) Dr. Sanchez
In a Q&A session, Maridueña shared what he thought made his character stand out from the ever-expanding roster of big-screen superheroes. "We see some of these other superheroes, who are able to hide from their family the fact that they’re a superhero, but his family is right there, on that first transformation," he said.
"To come through this journey together is something that we haven’t seen before in superhero movies, and that really is the beating heart of this movie. Although this was my first time being a superhero and coming into a character like this, it can’t happen without the family.
"That theme, whether or not you’re Latino, transcends ethnicity and color of skin because that’s something that we can all relate to. That’s been the most exciting part. Although it is undeniably and unapologetically Latino, everyone will understand. Everyone understands Jaime", he added. (quotes via Digital Spy).
What's the Blue Beetle plot?
The official Blue Beetle synopsis from Warner Bros reads: "Recent college grad Jaime Reyes (Xolo Maridueña) 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."
Trailers made it look like Sarandon's Victoria Kord is the main villain of the film, and the plot seems to be pulling from a comics storyline that saw her revealed as the sister of a past version of the Blue Beetle hero, Ted Kord. As CEO of Kord Industries, it seems like she's not very pleased that the Scarab has bonded with Jaime, and clearly wants it back. Perhaps this means we could be seeing a cameo from one of the former Blue Beetle characters, too?
Is there a Blue Beetle trailer?
We were treated to a second Blue Beetle trailer in early July. Whilst the first focused mostly on Jaime Reyes' origins, this new one sees him embroiled in battle and grappling with his powers as the titular hero. His foes set out to target his family, and its clear he's going to do everything he can to protect them...though from the end of the trailer, his family might not be quite as helpless as you'd expect!
The first official trailer dropped on Monday, April 3, 2023. In it, we're introduced to Jaime Reyes. In a twist of fate, he ends up being given the 'scarab', a piece of alien biotechnology that adopts him as his host and transforms him into the Blue Beetle as his nearest and dearest look on in horror.
From the looks of things, Jaime's pushed into action to keep the people he loves safe as villainous figures set out to recover the technology they believe is rightfully theirs. Get your first glimpse at the Blue Beetle in action here:
Who directed Blue Beetle?
Puerto Rican filmmaker Angel Manuel Soto (Charm City Kings, The Farm) is at the helm of Blue Beetle, directing from a screenplay penned by Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer.
John Rickard and Zev Foreman serve are producing, and Walter Hamada, Galen Vaisman and Garrett Grant are on board as executive producers.
Is Blue Beetle part of the DCEU or DCU?
Like The Flash and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, Blue Beetle is one of the final films hanging over from the previous DC Extended Universe, as we previously mentioned. And new DC movie boss James Gunn has publicly stated that Blue Beetle and the other outstanding films will facilitate the transition from the DCEU to the new DC Universe's first era of projects, Gods and Monsters.
However, Deadline has reported that there are plans to fold the character into the new era of DC superhero movies, with the site claiming "Word is the character will be incorporated in the universe being developed by new DC bosses Peter Safran and James Gunn. In DC canon, Blue Beetle is amigos with Booster Gold, another DC character who Gunn/Safran are developing a TV series around."
That is anecdotal evidence though, so for now it's up in the air whether the character will definitively return later down the line, either in his current form or otherwise.
