2023’s Blue Beetle came out at an awkward time. The film was greenlit before James Gunn and Peter Safran took over DC Studios and released well before that duo was able to execute its vision. It wasn’t connected to what came before, and it wasn’t connected to what was coming next. It was just in limbo. But that’s about to change.
According to multiple trades, Blue Beetle, played by Cobra Kai star Xolo Maridueña, is reportedly set to appear in James Gunn’s upcoming film Man of Tomorrow, which is set for release on July 9, 2027. The film, which is now in production, was thought to be primarily a story of Superman (David Corenswet) and Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult) forming an unlikely alliance to take down DC’s biggest threat yet, Brainiac (Lars Eidinger). Other DC stars will appear too, such as members of the Justice Gang (Mister Terrific, Hawkgirl, Guy Gardner, and Metamorpho) and even John Stewart from Lanterns. So it certainly seems plausible that another hero is called in to help.
For years, Gunn has teased that Blue Beetle, real name Jaime Reyes, could become part of his new DC Universe. And while there was word of an animated series, which could potentially still happen, it seems more likely that this will happen first.
And, frankly, this is fantastic news. Blue Beetle was an excellent, underrated movie, with great action, characters, visuals, and more. It was easily one of the best DC movies of the previous era. Ultimately, the fact that it was disconnected from both the previous and current storylines set it up perfectly to pay off later and, hopefully, now it will.
Man of Tomorrow, which also stars Rachel Brosnahan, Skyler Gisondo, Frank Grillo, Sara Sampaio, and Milly Alcock as Supergirl, opens July 9, 2027.
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