Cobra Kai star Xolo Maridueña will soon join the pantheon of superheroes in Blue Beetle, and the actor has revealed that discussions have taken place between himself and co-CEO of DC Studios James Gunn regarding the character’s future in the rebooted DCU. Discussing the movie with Fandango alongside the rest of the Blue Beetle cast, Maridueña offered details of his talks with Gunn, with Blue Beetle’s future dependent on how well the first outing does with audiences.
“I have had the pleasure of getting to speak to Mr. James Gunn and the whole DC fam. At the end of the day, we have to cross this first hill and introduce Jamie to the world but it’s up to the audience to watch the movie…If it does well we get to open more doors for more Blue Beetles.”
For a while, Blue Beetle’s position in the DCU was a somewhat confusing one. And sort of still is. Gunn himself has recently tried to clarify things saying, “The first DCU character for sure is Blue Beetle, and the first DCU movie is Superman [Legacy].” Meaning that, with Maridueña’s superhero being the first DCU character, Blue Beetle is expected to join the likes of David Corenswet’s Superman at some point in the future of the franchise.
But, as is often the case with tentpole filmmaking, it all depends on the box office. Which could prove to be a problem for Blue Beetle if previous reports turn out to be accurate.
Blue Beetle Is Due to Land in Theaters Later This Month
Blue Beetle follows Jaime Reyes (Xolo Maridueña), who suddenly finds himself in possession of an ancient relic of alien biotechnology called the Scarab. When the Scarab chooses Jaime to be its symbiotic host, he’s bestowed with an incredible suit of armor that’s capable of extraordinary and unpredictable powers, forever changing his destiny as he becomes the superhero Blue Beetle.
Led by Xolo Maridueña as Jamie Reyes aka Blue Beetle, Blue Beetle also stars Adriana Barraza (Rambo: Last Blood, Thor), Damían Alcázar (Narcos, Narcos: Mexico), Elpidia Carrillo (Mayans M.C., the Predator series), Bruna Marquezine (Maldivas, God Save the King), Raoul Max Trujillo (the Sicario movies, Mayans M.C.), and stand-up comedian George Lopez (the Rio franchise), Belissa Escobedo (American Horror Stories, Hocus Pocus 2), singer Becky G, and Harvey Guillén (What We Do in the Shadows), with Oscar winner Susan Sarandon (Monarch, Dead Man Walking) starring as the villain of the piece, Victoria Kord, a ruthless billionaire and business owner who is hellbent on acquiring the Scarab.
Should Blue Beetle do well enough, the superhero will join the likes of Superman: Legacy and the Batman project The Brave and the Bold, as well as Swamp Thing, Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, and The Authority in James Gunn and Peter Safran’s expanding DCU.
Blue Beetle is scheduled to be released in the United States on August 18, 2023, by Warner Bros. Pictures.
