It only took two years and some months, but DC and Warner Bros. are finally moving forward with that Blue Beetle movie we heard about at the end of 2018. At the time, we knew that Garth Dunnet-Alocer, who previously worked on the upcoming Scarface remake and Gina Rodriguez’s Miss Bala, had written a script, but now we also know that Charm City Kings director Angel Manuel Soto has stepped in to direct the film. That’s according to The Wrap, which notes that this will be the WB’s first superhero movie staring a Latino character, with Soto saying in a statement that it’s “an honor” to be the one to direct this film.
For those who don’t know the Blue Beetle—or who haven’t read comics in a few decades and only know a different Blue Beetle—this one is only slightly complicated. 80 years ago there was a comic book about a guy named Dan Garrett who fought crime as the Blue Beetle, and a few decades later, Charlton Comics got the rights to the character and (with the help of Steve Ditko) created a second Blue Beetle named Ted Kord. That one was fairly explicitly a Batman knockoff, with Nite Owl in Watchmen being a parody of him rather than the Dark Knight (they’re all Charlton characters with different names in that book), but a few decades after that DC swallowed up Charlton Comics and integrated some of its character into the DC Universe.
The Ted Kord Blue Beetle was around for years, serving as a memorable part of the Justice League International team alongside none other than Batman, but in 2006 DC introduce a new and completely unrelated Blue Beetle named Jaime Reyes who got his power from a blue alien/magic scarab that attached itself to his spine. He’s like Venom crossed with Cyborg, and he’s very cool.
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Actually, Ted Kord’s Blue Beetle was more Ditko ripping off Spider-Man. Just look at his fighting style in his first appearance in Captain Atom #83.In fact during Len Wein’s run on the Blue Beetle, there’s a direct homage to Amazing Spider-Man #33 in Blue Beetle #2.On a side note, in his first appearance in Mystery Man Comics #1, Dan Garret’s Blue Beetle was a blatant knock-off of the Green Hornet.
If you’re interested, check out Linkara’s retrospective on the Blue Beetle from the Golden Age to the Nu52.
I love it when you do this.
The Ted Kord Blue Beetle was around for years, serving as a memorable part of the Justice League International team alongside none other than Batman, but in 2006 DC introduce a new and completely unrelated Blue Beetle named Jaime Reyes who got his power from a blue alien/magic scarab that attached itself to his spine. He’s like Venom crossed with Cyborg, and he’s very cool.I’d says he’s more like Guyver crossed with Spider-Man. Also, in a unique twist to many superheroes, he doesn’t lie to his friends and family and tells them he’s a superhero by issue 3.Also, and I’ve shown this before, but he’s also just a really good kid who just wants to help people. His ultimate power fantasy is to get a high paying job that could help pay for his kid sister’s college, pay off his family’s mortgage, and have enough left over to buy a vacation home near his grandmother.
And he hangs out with a sexy version of the dude from Death Note?
No, that’s Jean Loring, Ray Palmer’s ex-wife and Sue Dibney’s murderer. She became a demon after she got locked in Arkham without trial for Sue’s murder.
Yeah and keeps losing her book that if you write a name in than that person dies?
The dentist reveal was one of my favorite comic moments ever- it’s the first thing I think of whenever Blue Beetle is mentioned.
I hope they keep at least some of the backstory, with the scarab being from the long-gone 40s Beetle (who just never figured out how to activate it properly), and having Ted Kord around as another retired Beetle who helps out as a bit of a mentor to Jaime (which I think was done at least a bit in the comics).
Actually, the Scarab wasn’t introduced until The Blue Beetle was bought by Charlton in 1964, well into the Silver Age. His Golden Age iteration was a police officer with a bulletproof suit of armor who got super strength and stamina from drugs.
Sure, but it’s still Dan Garret, isn’t it? We don’t really need the “real” original version of the GA iteration.
Yeah
I get why they’re using the Jaime Reyes Beetle, but timeline-wise it just doesn’t make as much sense, does it? But I do hope Kord is still alive in this movie and can be like Harrison Wells (the non-evil versions) is to Barry Allen on the Flash.
I hope this doesn’t get stuck in limbo like a lot of DC’s other movies. There’s a great bench of B and C-tier heroes, and it’ll be nice to see one of them headline a project
Is the scarab on Jaime the same one that gave Dan Garrett his powers? Although my only exposure to the Garrett Blue Beetle was from the 80s run
Yeah it’s the same Scarab. Ted gave the Scarab to The Wizard Shazam during Countdown to Infinite Crisis and, when Black Adam shattered the Rock of Ages during Infinite Crisis, it landed in El Paso Texas and fused to Jaime’s body.
…yes