The Blue Beetle movie, which was announced in 2018, is finally moving forward. It was announced via The Wrap that Angel Manuel Soto, who helmed the indie hit Charm City Kings, will direct the movie. This newest DC/Warner Bros. movie will follow Jaime Reyes, the third Blue Beetle, as DC’s first Latino film lead.
“It is an honor to direct Blue Beetle, the first Latino superhero film for DC,” Soto told The Wrap. “I want to sincerely thank everyone at Warner Bros. and DC for trusting me to bring Jaime Reyes to life. I can’t wait to make history together.”
Blue Beetle was originally introduced in 1939 as police officer Dan Garrett. During the Silver Age his origin was changed, turning him into an archaeologist who gains powers from a mystical scarab. In the 1980s, inventor and athlete Ted Kord was introduced as the second version of Blue Beetle and he became a popular figure at DC in books like Justice League International.
After Ted was killed in Infinite Crisis, Jaime Reyes was introduced in 2006. He is a teenager from El Paso who finds the Blue Beetle Scarab, and after it fuses with him, he gets pulled into Infinite Crisis. Since then, Jaime has established his own popularity with an ongoing comic series, appearances in DC’s animated shows Batman: The Brave and the Bold and Young Justice and a live-action spot on Smallville.
The script is being written by Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer, who penned Miss Bala and the remake of Scarface. According to The Wrap, the movie is looking to start production in the fall of 2021. The actor who will step into the Blue Beetle costume was not announced, nor was a release date.