DC's Blue Beetle live-action movie is reportedly on target for release and safe from cancelation. The film is directed by Angel Manuel Soto (Charm City Kings) and stars Xolo Maridueña as the titular character, the first Latino DC superhero to get the live-action treatment. Blue Beetle also stars Susan Sarandon, Elpidia Carrillo, Harvey Guillén, Raoul Max Trujillo, George Lopez, and is written by Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer (Miss Bala).
Initially slated for an HBO Max original debut, the Blue Beetle movie was upgraded to a 2023 theatrical release in late 2021. The film went into production in May 2022 and wrapped filming in mid-July, and has already gone into post-production. However, with the recent strategy shift under Warner Bros. Discovery, which shelved both Batgirl, Scoob! Haunted Holiday, and canceled a number of DC movies and TV shows in the works, put Blue Beetle's fate in jeopardy. After this wave of cancellations, many feared the project would suffer the same fate.
Per THR, it appears that Blue Beetle is safe from being shelved and is still on target for its August 2023 release date. In addition to Blue Beetle, it appears that some of the other DC projects in question are moving ahead on the development side, including the planned Black Canary movie with Jurnee Smollett and the Green Lantern series from executive producer Greg Berlanti. While this is good news considering the cancellations that have shaken the industry since they were announced last week, there have still been more casualties, including the planned Strange Adventures anthology series, which director Kevin Smith had been working on for one of the episodes.
The news of Blue Beetle reportedly moving forward is certainly a positive update. Blue Beetle is a staple DC character who has been around since the late 1930s, making him a strong choice to introduce into the DCEU proper (if that is indeed where he'll fit in). The character has had three different people wear the costume over the years, with the most recent being Jaime Reyes, making him a Latino superhero, which is an important aspect of who he is. The Blue Beetle movie's confirmation is also good news for its lead star Mariduena, who is set to appear in Cobra Kai season 5 on Netflix in September. He will continue his role as Miguel Diaz, which is the part that helped put him on the radar for Blue Beetle to begin with.
While it may seem perplexing that Blue Beetle would continue with a theatrical release, while Batgirl was shelved, it's important to note that one of the issues that plagued Batgirl was that it was produced to be an HBO Max original. Blue Beetle was initially intended to be an HBO Max original as well, but was upgraded before production started to be a theatrical release. This helped to ensure that it would meet the demand of a cinema audience, in both star power and budget. While it is disappointing that Batgirl won't be released, it ultimately rests in the hands of WB Discovery, who apparently still have faith in Blue Beetle, which should make those eagerly anticipating its release very happy.
Source: THR
