Blue Beetle DC Movie to Premiere in Theaters Instead of HBO Max
Instead of being an HBO Max exclusive, the upcoming DC movie Blue Beetle will now be heading straight-to-theaters in the fall of 2023. The DC film from director Angel Manuel Sota stars Cobra Kai star Xolo Maridueña in the lead role as Jaime Reyes, a young teenager who discovers an alien scarab that bonds to his body. While Blue Beetle didn't previously have an HBO Max release date, a shift to the Warner Bros. film slate has brought with it details on the superhero flick exiting the streaming wars for a big-screen release. Blue Beetle now has a premiere date of August 18, 2023.
This puts Blue Beetle as one of the last DC films to land in theaters that year, following Shazam! Fury of the Gods on June 2, 2023. It joins a long list of future DC branded movies, as the studio prepares to release many of them across theaters and HBO Max. Other films scheduled to premiere on HBO Max include Batgirl starring Leslie Grace and Black Canary starring Jurnee Smollett reprising her Birds of Prey role. This is in addition to a group of television series such as Peacemaker, Constantine, Justice League Dark, Zatanna, Madame X, and a Black Superman event series possibly featuring Val-Zod. So far, every DC HBO Max series except for Peacemaker and Val-Zod points to a Justice League Dark connected universe from J.J. Abrams.
Fans got a first look at concept art for Blue Beetle during DC FanDome. It feature Blue Beetle in a crouching pose as blue electrical energy radiated next to him. Maridueña was interviewed on the red carpet for The Suicide Squad, where he confirmed reports that he landed the Blue Beetle role.
"The only thing that is on my mind right now is just the fact that he's Latino. I have so much pride in getting to be a part of this project with Angel, someone like him," Maridueña told Variety. "I think it's so important, and I don't want to stand on the soapbox for too long but representation is so important."
He added, "It's such a great opportunity, and I'm not going to take it lightly, and we're about to make a kick-ass movie."
Sota chimed in, speaking of how he couldn't picture anyone except Maridueña as Jaime Reyes. "Since I got the invitation from DC to work on this project, I couldn't stop seeing him as the character," Sota said.
What are your thoughts on Blue Beetle's big move from HBO Max to theaters? Let us know in the comments!