Blue Beetle's 'Batman Is A Fascist' Line Isn't Just A Throwaway Joke
The first trailer for "Blue Beetle" is here, and while the latest superhero movie from DC and Warner Bros. is set to serve as an origin story for a young hero — Jaime Reyes / Blue Beetle — whose name isn't exactly as well-known as Batman or Superman, the movie already looks like it's got some fighting words for DC's big guys. Or at least, Jaime's uncle Rudy — played by George Lopez — does.
/Film's Jenna Busch attended a trailer launch event for "Blue Beetle," with director Angel Manuel Soto and star Xolo Maridueña in attendance. There, "Cobra Kai" star Maridueña spoke about the ways in which "Blue Beetle" may or may not intersect with the larger DC universe, particularly when it comes to Rudy's declaration that "Batman is a fascist."
"I can't reveal if more superheroes are mentioned, but the Batman one is obviously in the trailer," Maridueña shared, "and I think we will experience certain superheroes and opinions through the eyes of the family." The actor clarified that just because a hero is name-dropped in the movie, it "doesn't necessarily mean that someone's going to show up." Rather, it sounds like the Reyes family will have some honest takes on the heroes that, at least in the case of Rudy's Batman comment, may not be particularly flattering.
"Funny as it is," Maridueña said, "the Rudy character, the uncle character, George Lopez's character, has, I think, a really interesting arc" that relates to his hot take on Batman. "You're getting to witness what someone like Rudy thinks about Batman, and you're getting to see what someone like Jaime thinks about these characters," Maridueña continued, referencing the teen hero he plays in the film. "I think it contextualizes it in a way that feels honest to these characters."
'That hero's journey is one that's different than Batman and Superman'
The first-ever DC film to star a Latino actor, "Blue Beetle" will feature a family that co-star Harvey Guillén previously said feels authentic and welcoming. "If you're a part of the Latino community ... you're going to feel like, 'Oh my gosh, my culture is on screen. That is how we talk at home,'" Guillén told /Film last December. In Uncle Rudy's case (played by George Lopez, seen above), that means calling out the Caped Crusader, who, to be fair, does hoard wealth, enforce a hyper-violent criminal justice system, and sometimes dabbles in NSA-like surveillance. Actually, I might be Team Rudy on this one.
Xolo Maridueña put it a little more kindly at the trailer premiere, and also related the Batman critique back to the point of "Blue Beetle." As he explained, "Jaime might think Batman is super cool, but at the heart of it, maybe what Batman stands for is a bit flawed." The actor said that "Blue Beetle" gets to "create our version of what we feel a superhero is — albeit different from Superman, who has no fears and who is the guy, in the face of no matter what, will get the job done." Instead, he points out, "we're meeting a person who, almost at the beginning, doesn't want this destiny" and is "resistant to his calling."
"That hero's journey is one that's different than Batman and Superman, but is unique and special in its own regard," Maridueña says of Jaime Reyes's path to becoming Blue Beetle. Audiences will meet him when "Blue Beetle" hits theaters on August 18, 2023.