The long-awaited trailer for DC’s “Blue Beetle” movie is finally here, as an ancient artifact “the scarab,” takes hold of Jaime Reyes and transforms the teenager into a superhero.
The kicker is that Reyes’ “transformation” isn’t a solo affair as in most comic book origin stories, but he transforms into an armored superhero in front of his family, a Latino family nonetheless!
Upon his transformation, the suit thrusts Reyes into the atmosphere and the teenager soars into space within seconds while he ponders his fate.
“Cobra Kai” breakout and fan favorite Xolo Maridueña stars in the title role of Jaime Reyes in “Blue Beetle,” DC Studios’ first superhero movie centered on a Latino character.
Maridueña previously said that “Blue Beetle” is a combination of both a DC and Marvel superhero.
“He’s kind of like a fusion of Green Lantern and Iron Man,” Maridueña said. “He has a scarab from outer space that is attached to his body called Khaji da.”
In DC Comics, Blue Beetle is the superhero alter ego used by three different heroes, but the film will focus on Mexican-American teenager Jaime Reyes, the third character to assume the Blue Beetle mantle.
“Charm City Kings” director Angel Manuel Soto directed the superhero movie from a screenplay from Mexican writer Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer, based on characters from DC.
“Blue Beetle” screenwriter Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer also touched upon the effect of being a superhero in a Latino family.
“What would my mom do if an alien technology burrowed into my spine?” Dunnet-Alcocer said. “She would not think it’s cool. And for the Reyes family, this is terrible. ‘We’re going to get attention from American institutions, from the government, from military, from the police.’”
John Rickard and Zev Foreman are producing, with Walter Hamada, Galen Vaisman and Garrett Grant serving as executive producers.
The newly released synopsis for the film is as follows: 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 Super Hero Blue Beetle.
The film also stars Adriana Barraza (“Rambo: Last Blood,” “Thor”) as Jaime’s grandmother, Nana, Damían Alcázar (“Narcos,” “Narcos: Mexico”) as his father, Elpidia Carrillo (“Mayans M.C.,” the “Predator” films) as his mother, Bruna Marquezine (“Maldivas,” “God Save the King”) as Jenny Kord, Raoul Max Trujillo (the “Sicario” films, “Mayans M.C.”) as Carapax, with Oscar winner Susan Sarandon (“Monarch,” “Dead Man Walking”) as Victoria Kord, and George Lopez (the “Rio and “Smurf” franchises) as Jaime’s Uncle Rudy. The film also stars Belissa Escobedo (“American Horror Stories,” “Hocus Pocus 2”) as Jaime’s sister, Milagro, and Harvey Guillén (“What We Do in the Shadows”) as Dr. Sanchez.
History of the “Blue Beetle”
Created by Keith Giffen, John Rogers, and Cully Hamner in 2006, Jaime Reyes was introduced during the “Infinite Crisis” crossover event ahead of the launch of a new “Blue Beetle” in May 2006. Reyes is a working-class El Paso teenager devoted to his family and with no connections to superheroes prior to receiving his powers.
In the new film, Reyes now hails from Palmera City, which was first introduced in the recent DC comic book “Blue Beetle: Graduation Day.”
Jaime Reyes discovered the Blue Beetle scarab on the way home from school with two of his best friends Paco and Brenda, half-buried in a disused lot. Reyes took the scarab home, curious as to what it might be. That night, the scarab came alive grafted itself to the base of Jaime’s spine and provided him with a suit of extraterrestrial armor that can be modified to enhance his speed and strength, as well as to create weapons, wings and shields.
When is “Blue Beetle” being released?
A Warner Bros. Pictures Presentation, a Safran Company Production, “Blue Beetle” soars into theaters only internationally beginning August 2023 and in North America August 18, 2023. It will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures.
