Warner Bros.’s Blue Beetle film has added Harvey Guillén, Belissa Escobedo, and Brazilian star Bruna Marquezine to its cast. The film stars Xolo Maridueña as Jaime Reyes, a young Latino man who becomes a superhero in the DC universe after acquiring an alien super suit.
As The Wrap reports, Marquezine is set to play Penny, a love interest for Jaime who does not seem to have a comic book counterpart. Escobedo will be playing Milagros Reyes, Jaime’s younger sister. Although not a prominent comic book character, Milagros is part of Jaime’s journey into becoming a superhero accepting the consequences of fighting crime in the middle of the night. In one specific storyline, Jaime disappears for a whole year, only to come back to a devastated family and a broken-hearted sister. There’s no information concerning surrounding what role Guillén will be playing.
In the comic books, Jaime is the third hero to wear the mantle of the Blue Beetle. Unlike his predecessors, Jaime starts his superhero journey in high school, which leads him to become a part of the Teen Titans. More recently, the character gained prominence by playing an essential role in the second season of Young Justice, Warner Bros.’s celebrated animated series focused on young heroes. However, the film adaptation of Blue Beetle might be departing from Jaime’s comic book origins by featuring an older version of the hero, since none of the confirmed cast members so far are teenagers. Or maybe the upcoming film won’t be an origin story at all, but will instead explore Jaime’s adventures after establishing himself as a superhero.
Escobedo will show up next in a leading role in Hocus Pocus 2, the first major blockbuster of her career. She is also part of Hulu’s Sex Appeal, American Horror Stories, and The Baker and the Beauty. Guillén is best known for paying Guillermo de la Cruz in FX’s What We Do in the Shadows, but has also been a part of the comic book adaption series Preacher. As for Marquezine, the star has a long and prolific career in Brazil, but she’ll make her Hollywood breakout in Blue Beetle.
Warner Bros. is, fortunately, respecting the character’s Latinx origin also behind the cameras, as Puerto Rican director Angel Manuel Soto helms Blue Beetle from a script by Mexican writer Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer.Talking about the experience of bringing Jaime Reyes to live-action for the first time, Maridueña previously stated:
“Honestly, it feels like I’ve skipped a few stepping stones. Cobra Kai has been such a wonderful opportunity, (and) it feels a little bit intimidating being this is my first movie and it’s in a realm that’s totally different than anything I’ve ever worked on. I’m nervous, but I’m excited. It’s gonna be important, not only for Latinos and to see people of color, brown people, represented onscreen, but also show a story that we haven’t really seen before.”
Moved from its original HBO Max release to theaters, the live-action Blue Beetle adaptation is expected to premiere on August 18, 2023.
via Collider