Blue Beetle Movie Acknowledges Batman, But Its Larger DCU Connection Remains a Mystery

The first trailer for Blue Beetle definitively answers the question of whether other DC superheroes exist in the film’s world with George Lopez’s closing line: “Batman’s a fascist!”

At a trailer launch press event last week, star Xolo Maridueña and director Angel Manuel Soto wouldn’t divulge if the movie will feature any superhero cameos or what if any future DCU connectivity it could have. But at a mixer following the Q&A, Soto did confirm to a small group of press, including myself, that Blue Beetle will somehow acknowledge the existence of other DC heroes.

Soto revealed during the Q&A that he and screenwriter Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer took inspiration from the New 52 version of Blue Beetle for Jaime Reyes’ suit of armor and certain aspects of the story, but that they ultimately used bits from all the different comics runs – specifically citing Infinite Crisis and Graduation Day – and even from the video game Injustice 2.

One key creative liberty they took for the film was giving Blue Beetle a new hometown, Palmera City (Jaime is based in El Paso in the comics). “The vision was to have Blue Beetle be on the same level as someone like a Superman or a Batman who have Gotham or Metropolis or cities that are the beating hearts of the themes of the comics,” Maridueña explained.

Soto echoed that sentiment: “Superman has Metropolis, Central City for the Flash. Gotham. Why doesn’t he have his own city? He’s fucking dope. That doesn’t mean that El Paso is not dope. El Paso is awesome and El Paso is very much present in the life of the family but in service of positioning Blue Beetle as a potential leader in the DCU, Palmera City came to life and thanks to Palmera City – as well as the bigger world-building around it – is what got us the theatrical [release].” 

Blue Beetle was initially developed as an original movie for HBO Max before Warner Bros. opted to make it a theatrical release instead. Soto, who said “the studio allowed me to run free in my creativity” while developing the project, also credits the concept art, screenplay, and the diversity of its cast of characters as factors in helping the studio see Blue Beetle’s global theatrical potential. (Soto even shot parts of Blue Beetle in IMAX.)

But having that larger canvas didn’t mean the filmmakers wanted to take the focus off the diverse community at the center of their story to make room for some out-of-this-world threat that most superhero movies include.

In the comics, the adventures of the different incarnations of Blue Beetle were often cosmic in nature, including crossing paths with the Green Lantern Corps. While Blue Beetle includes sci-fi elements like the alien Scarab and Jaime’s armor (created by costume designer Mayes C. Rubeo), Soto’s film is purposely down to earth.

“Maybe there’ll be room for the second or third one to do the crazy alien stuff but the stuff that you see in this movie is all very tangible and it feels rooted in today’s world,” Maridueña said at the Q&A. “It’s 110% because it’s the world that we know, plus a little bit extra magic.”

As Soto explained, “We were picturing this as almost like the first act of a big saga. We really wanted to make the things that sometimes appear to be small due to clouding of privilege, they can actually be worse than an alien invasion to some people.” 

“How can we translate [that] into a movie where a superhero can actually be a superhero? It doesn’t really have to be with saving the planet from this fake invasion but it’s actually something they can relate to which for some of us is bigger than life. I think the studio saw the potential there and they were like, ‘Theaters.’”

Blue Beetle opens exclusively in movie theaters on August 18.