With the limited time they have between now and the film’s release, Warner Bros. is wasting no time casting characters for their upcoming live-action adaptation of LatinoDCsuperheroBlue Beetle. While they’ve already announcedCobra Kaistar Xolo Maridueña as the titular hero, they’ve now announced who will be joining him for the upcoming film.
Angel Manuel Soto, known for his work onCharm City Kings, will be directingDC’sBlue Beetlefilm, and the screenplay will be written by Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer, whose known for writingUniversal’sScarfaceremakeandMiss Bala. John Rickard is also set to produce the film.
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The Wrap announced that actors Bruna Marquezine, Belissa Escobedo, and Harvey Guillen have been cast as the supporting cast members for the movie. Marquezine will be playing the female lead and love interest of Blue Beetle named Penny, while Escobedo is going to play Blue Beetle’s younger sister Milagro Reyes. However, Guillen’s role in the film as of now has not been disclosed, but it will be in due time.
The release ofBlue Beetleis going to be the first live-action adaptation of a Latino superhero. In the past, superhero movies have had some Latino representation - think Luis fromtheAnt-Manfilms- but not much. Since we’ve recently had African representation (Black Panther) and Asian representation (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings) in superhero media the past few years, it was only a matter of time until fans had Latino representation too, which is much deserved.
With any luck, this will only continue to pave the way for more diversity not just in superhero films but popular films in general. What’s been very encouraging is that while these films are diverse, they’ve also been quality films on top of it, which shows that studios have certainly cared about these particular products they’re developing, as opposed to making them primarily to meet a quota. Since the previous diverse superhero films with more representation have been gripping and entertaining, audiences shouldexpectBlue Beetleto be in that same ballpark at this point.
All things considered,Blue Beetleis not the most popular superhero, so whether audiences go out of their way to see it is up in the air. Then again,it’s not like Black Pantherand Shang-Chiwere popular either before their films. When you think about it, neither Iron Man nor Captain America were Marvel’s premier heroes before they got their own movies. It took them getting their own films to garner the popularity they now have. ExpectingBlue Beetleto get the same treatment as them is setting the bar a little high, but big things always have small beginnings.
Blue Beetleis slated to be released in theaters on August 18th, 2023.
