Para artículo en español, clic: Blue Beetle: primer superhéro Latino con película de acción en vivo

By cody Downey

Amid a restructuring of the DC Cinematic Universe, Blue Beetle looks to not only lead the charge in this rebooted franchise but to provide the first live-action Latino superhero movie.

Coming to theaters August 18th, Blue Beetle follows recent college graduate Jaime Reyes whose life is changed forever when given a box containing an alien technology known as The Scarab, which puts a target on Jaime and his extended family, as businesswoman Victoria Kord looking to get The Scarab back. With the help of The Scarab, Jaime becomes Blue Beetle using the technology to protect his family and keep the tech out of the wrong hands.

The film is directed by Angel Manuel Soto, director of Charm City Kings and Menudo: Forever Young, and stars Cobra Kai’s Xolo Mariduena as Jaime. Alongside Mariduena, the cast includes George Lopez, Bruna Marquezine, Damian Alcazar, Raoul Trujillo, and Susan Sarandon.

The character of Jaime Reyes debuted in 2006 as part of the Infinite Crisis storyline and is the third iteration of the Blue Beetle character originally introduced in 1939. Since his introduction, the Jaime Reyes version of Blue Beetle has become extremely popular with fans, joining the superhero group Teen Titans and getting his solo series recently titled Blue Beetle: Graduation Day. The character has even appeared in other DC shows like Batman: The Brave and the Bold and Young Justice.

Blue Beetle becomes the first live-action Latino superhero movie with this upcoming movie, following the first Latino superhero movie Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse and its sequel Spider-Man: Across the Spiderverse, animated films following the Afro-Puerto Rican Miles Morales as he becomes the newest Spider-Man. It all comes at a crucial time when more and more people ask for Latino representation.

 It is rare to see Latinos outside of supporting roles or playing non-human characters in superhero films. The Marvel Cinematic Universe has had Michael Pena’s Luis from the Ant-Man films and Zoe Saldana’s Gamora from The Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy. Before this film, DC had Sasha Calle’s Supergirl in The Flash and Jay Hernandez’s El Diablo in Suicide Squad. It all has been a stepping stone leading to this film, where a Latino hero directed by a Latino director and surrounded by a Latino cast can enter the spotlight.

Due to the Writer and Actor Strikes going on in Hollywood, Blue Beetle won’t receive any promotion from the cast due to strike guidelines. So, for any fans of the upcoming movie, it will be up to you to spread the word about the film, see it in theaters and make it known that films starring Latinos are profitable if we want more movies like it.