This past summer, Warner Bros. released its other swan song to the DCEU in Blue Beetle. If you were one of the folks who didn’t see the movie when it was in theaters back in mid-August and forwent the physical release in favor of streaming, good news: it’s hitting Max next Friday, October 17.
The feature film debut for beloved comic book character Jaime Reyes had solid reviews when it first landed, particularly for Xolo Maridueña’s performance and the Reyes family at large, along with being the most low stakes superhero movie in quite some time. But at $129 million worldwide, it clearly didn’t take off with audiences enough to give it a shot. Much of that was out of the film’s hands: it had the unfortunate luck of releasing in the middle of two Hollywood strikes, meaning stars like Maridueña and George Lopez couldn’t get out there and promote it in any capacity without getting into trouble. It also didn’t help that it was coming amid a general muted reaction for superhero fare this year, and coming out months after The Flash did decent damage to both the DC and Warner Bros. brand.
With the strikes now over, it feels like the right time for Blue Beetle to get some attention on streaming. (Fun fact: it was originally meant to be a Max release before Warner Bros. decided it should receive a theatrical run.) On Instagram, Maridueña posted set photos and called working on the film “sacred...From the family you see on screen to the ones i made off, this movie has tore me down and built me back up in ways I’ll never be able to articulate. [...] Thank you for everyone who supported and showed out, the response has been overwhelmingly positive and there isn’t a week that passes by without thinking of the Blue Beetle Battalion!!” Other stars such as Bruna Marquezine (Jenny Kord) have done their own individual posts as well.
If you’ve seen Blue Beetle already, let us know what you thought of the film—and where you ‘d like to see Jaime and company next—in the comments below.
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