Summary
Blue Beetleactor Xolo Maridueña has spoken to James Gunn but fans may get deja vu judging by his response to the character’s potential return, as Gunn reportedly expressed the same wait-and-see approach forBlue Beetlethat he did for Zachary Levi’s Shazam, Ezra Miller’s Barry Allen followingThe Flash, and presumably the same for Aquaman regarding Jason Momoa’s upcoming sequel.
There ismuch riding on theBlue Beetle’s success. According to Gunn, it’s the first DC film followingThe Flashthat exists in the upcoming DCU timeline. However, the DC Studios CEO also states that despite this, the first official DCU film isSuperman: Legacy, which he will write and direct. Gunn’s divide between DCU characters and films may confuse general audiences and contradictDCStudios co-CEO Peter Safran’s statements on “trying to minimize audience confusion and maximize their enjoyment.” Amid this, theBlue Beetleactor has spoken to Gunn, but with much-needed clarity comes even more uncertainty, as his response puts the character’s fate in the audience’s hands.
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Maridueña toldFandangohe spoke with Gunn, and his takeaway from the conversation was that they “have to cross this first hill and introduce Jamie to the world, but it’s up to the audience to watch the movie…If it does well we get to open more doors for more Blue Beetles.“Blue Beetlewas already in post-production by the time Gunn and Safran were hired as DC Studios' CEOs following the Warner Bros. Discovery merger that saw David Zaslav take control of the company, soBlue Beetlewas technically still part of the prior WB regime. As a result,Blue Beetleis essentially a character being offered to Gunn in his DCU reboot, so his answer of leaving the Blue Beetle’s fate to the box office is consistent with the hero’s absence inthe first DC Universe Chapter announcement.
Zack Snyder highlighted a never-before-seen image ofBlue Beetlewhen expressing that he and his family would be watching the movie. The X post currently sits at 16 million views, a much-needed push in the film’s marketing campaign at a time when the actors and director are unable to promoteBlue Beetledue to the WGA Strike. Even so, tracking analytics suggest thatBlue Beetlewill be another box office failurefor DC. If this is the case, according to Gunn’s business strategy,Blue Beetlemay be a one-and-done.
Blue Beetleis not the only DC superhero shrouded in uncertainty, asGal Gadot may not be done with Wonder Womaneither. Unless Gunn and Safran release a cut-and-dry statement on what the future holds for DC, brand confusion may be the unfortunate outcome of a soft reboot that appears unclear with what it wants to do with its characters.
