Blue Beetle DCU Animated Show Release Plan Revealed by Xolo Mariduena

Blue Beetle actor Xolo Maridueña will reprise his DCEU role in James Gunn’s new DC Universe (DCU). The young actor has now provided an update on when to expect his character’s return.

Blue Beetle was one of the last DCEU movies released before the franchise was rebooted into Gunn’s DCU. However, in the lead-up to the film’s release, Gunn clarified that he intended to bring back Maridueña’s Blue Beetle in the new DCU. Nearly a year later, Deadline reported that a Blue Beetle animated series was in development that would build on the DCEU movie but start its own story that could lead to a new feature film starring Maridueña​​​​​ as Jaime Reyes. The report noted that multiple actors had been approached and responded positively to potentially returning, but contracts for the main cast were “still in flux.” However, Maridueña recently confirmed he is indeed returning to voice Jaime Reyes in the Blue Beetle animated series.

Related

Superman Release Could Be Blocked In Several Countries By A New Lawsuit

James Gunn’s Superman movie could hit a roadblock due to a lawsuit claiming Warner Bros. and DC don’t have the rights to release it in key countries.

During an interview with The Direct at the 2025 Saturn Awards, Maridueña revealed he hopes to see the Blue Beetle animated series released in 2026. Maridueña said that while he’s ready to return as Jaime Reyes and that the team is “hitting hard” with the Blue Beetle animated series, they need to “get this settled out this year” to show the series to fans next year. Regarding Gunn’s plans for Blue Beetle and the possibility of returning for a live-action film, Maridueña said he didn’t want to comment while the DC Studios is developing his DCU plans but that he’s “ready” for whatever happens.

After Gunn and Peter Safran were named DC Studios’ co-CEOs and tasked with launching the new DCU franchise, Gal Gadot claimed the duo told her they would develop Wonder Woman 3 together. However, subsequent reports have refuted these claims, leading fans to assume that Gadot was trying to secure her role as Wonder Woman through the press or that Gunn had misled the actress about his plans for the character, who could be recast for the DCU. Whatever the truth is on that matter, Maridueña said he has no reason to believe Gunn is lying about wanting him to stay on board as Blue Beetle.

Maridueña is one of the few DCEU actors to reprise his role in the new DCU franchise. He may be the only actor who wasn’t a cast member in Gunn’s DCEU projects The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker. As noted by Deadline, the Blue Beetle series intends to build off the DCEU movie while telling a new story, meaning Gunn will likely pick and choose which elements from the film are still DCU canon. For instance, the animated series Creature Commandos references events from The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker, such as the death of Rick Flag Jr. and Amanda Waller’s Task Force X being exposed. However, Gunn has explained that these events are DCU canon because they were mentioned in Creature Commandos, not because they happened in The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker. Everything else in those DCEU projects has been described by Gunn as a ‘bad memory’ of what happened.

Of course, the Blue Beetle movie was partly praised for its stellar supporting cast. Jaime Reyes’ family and love interest Jenny Kord (Bruna Marquezine) endeared themselves to fans. So, while it is understandable why Gunn may want to avoid being beholden to every aspect of the Blue Beetle movie, many fans likely want to see more than just the titular hero return.

Blue Beetle (2023) is available on Max.

More

James Gunn’s Elseworlds Plan Is Great For Fans & Bad For General Audiences

ames Gunn’s Elseworlds initiative brings bold, standalone DC stories to life but faces the challenge of balancing fan excitement clarity.

Source: The Direct