DC Superhero ‘Blue Beetle’ Brings Latino Family Team to Big Screen

 This image released by Warner Bros. Pictures shows Xolo Mariduena in a scene from "Blue Beetle." (Warner Bros. Pictures via AP)
This image released by Warner Bros. Pictures shows Xolo Mariduena in a scene from "Blue Beetle." (Warner Bros. Pictures via AP)
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DC Superhero ‘Blue Beetle’ Brings Latino Family Team to Big Screen

 This image released by Warner Bros. Pictures shows Xolo Mariduena in a scene from "Blue Beetle." (Warner Bros. Pictures via AP)
This image released by Warner Bros. Pictures shows Xolo Mariduena in a scene from "Blue Beetle." (Warner Bros. Pictures via AP)

Xolo Mariduena quickly learned that he and his character in the latest DC Studios film "Blue Beetle" have one big thing in common — they cannot hide anything from their families.

The "Cobra Kai" actor plays college graduate-turned-superhero Jaime Reyes, the first Latino superhero in a DC movie, who finds it impossible to keep his alter-ego a secret.

"There's no hiding from mom and dad that I'm Blue Beetle. As a Latino, I know that there's no secrets in my family, so I felt it resonated with me and the fact that the superhero in this movie is really the family," Mariduena told Reuters last month before film promotion was halted by the Screen Actors Guild strike.

In the film, Jaime returns to his hometown of Palmera City after graduating from college and has his life turned upside down when he is chosen by a blue scarab from an alien planet to become the Blue Beetle.

Jaime bonds with the scarab, which transforms into protective armor for him. He must ensure the scarab does not fall into the wrong hands while also trying to protect his family.

"Blue Beetle" arrives in theaters on Friday and also features comedian George Lopez as Uncle Rudy and Susan Sarandon as the main villain.

Focusing on the importance of a Latino family was always a top priority for the Puerto Rican director of the Warner Bros film, Angel Manuel Soto.

"The resilience of our people is represented in each of those characters, from the dad to the mom to the sister and when it comes to the uncle, for example, Uncle Rudy is inspired 100 percent on the uncle of the writer (Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer) who passed away last year," Soto told Reuters.

"He wanted to immortalize him in this film and bring this dark brown energy to the family."

For Soto, making the film would not have been possible without emerging equity in entertainment. As the most underrepresented group in the industry, Latino talent is keen to change their narrative.

Last week, Variety reported that 27 Latino Hollywood organizations signed an open letter calling on the community to amplify Latino work, especially "Blue Beetle."

Mariduena believes that "Blue Beetle" is "just the first step" to hopefully open the door for other Latino superheroes to reach the big screen.



‘Severance,’ ‘The Penguin’ Lead Nominations for TV’s Emmy Awards

US actor Adam Scott attends PaleyFest LA screening of the season finale of "Severance" at the Dolby Theater in Hollywood, California, on March 21, 2025. (AFP)
US actor Adam Scott attends PaleyFest LA screening of the season finale of "Severance" at the Dolby Theater in Hollywood, California, on March 21, 2025. (AFP)
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‘Severance,’ ‘The Penguin’ Lead Nominations for TV’s Emmy Awards

US actor Adam Scott attends PaleyFest LA screening of the season finale of "Severance" at the Dolby Theater in Hollywood, California, on March 21, 2025. (AFP)
US actor Adam Scott attends PaleyFest LA screening of the season finale of "Severance" at the Dolby Theater in Hollywood, California, on March 21, 2025. (AFP)

Psychological thriller "Severance" from Apple TV+ and HBO's crime drama "The Penguin" stacked up the most nominations for Emmy Awards on Tuesday, outpacing "The Studio" and "The White Lotus" in the contest for television's highest honors.

"Severance" received a leading 27 nominations and was nominated for the top prize of best drama alongside Star Wars series "Andor,The Pitt,The White Lotus" and others.

"The Penguin," set in the DC Comics universe and starring Colin Farrell, earned 24 nominations and will compete for best limited series against Netflix hit "Adolescence," among others.

Hollywood satire "The Studio," an Apple TV+ show featuring Seth Rogen as a nervous film executive, and HBO's "The White Lotus," about murder and misdeeds at a luxury resort, received 23 each.

"What the heck?!! We never thought this would happen," Rogen said in a statement.

Comedy nominees included defending champion "Hacks," previous winner "The Bear,Nobody Wants This" and "Abbott Elementary."

The 23 nominations for "The Studio" tied the record for a comedy in a single season, set last year by Chicago restaurant tale "The Bear."

Winners of the Emmys will be announced at a red-carpet ceremony in Los Angeles, broadcast live on CBS on September 14. Comedian Nate Bargatze will host.

The television industry is undergoing a contraction as media companies curtail the sky-high spending they shelled out to compete in the shift to streaming platforms led by Netflix.

Longtime Emmy favorite HBO and the HBO Max streaming service topped all programmers with 142 nominations, a record for the network.

Walt Disney collected 137 nominations, including six for ABC's "Abbott Elementary," one of the few broadcast shows in the Emmy mix. "Andor," on Disney+, received 14.

Netflix garnered 120 nods and Apple scored 81, its highest total since launching its streaming service in 2019.

"Severance" tells the story of office workers who undergo a procedure to make them forget their home life at work, and vice versa.

"It's distinctive in every way - in terms of its storytelling, in terms of style, in terms of its directing, its tone," said Matt Cherniss, head of programming at Apple TV+.

Star Adam Scott, a best actor nominee, said the cast was unsure how viewers would respond.

"The fact that it's resonated at all has been just such an incredible feeling," Scott said. "We thought it was something that might be too weird."

WYLE, FORD IN THE RUNNING

Noah Wyle received his first Emmy nomination since 1999 for his role as an emergency room doctor on "The Pitt." Wyle was nominated five times for "ER" but never won.

"I'm humbled and grateful," Wyle said of the recognition for "The Pitt," which received 13 total nominations.

Harrison Ford, 83, earned his first Emmy nod, for playing a grumpy therapist on "Shrinking."

Ron Howard, the former "Happy Days" star turned Oscar-winning director, also landed his first acting nomination, a guest actor nod for playing himself on "The Studio." He will compete with fellow director Martin Scorsese, also a guest star on the show.

Other notable acting nominees included Farrell and Cristin Milioti for "The Penguin,The Bear" actors Jeremy Allen White and Ayo Edebiri, "Hacks" stars Jean Smart and Hannah Einbinder, Kathy Bates for "Matlock" and Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey for "The Last of Us."

Eight "White Lotus" actors were recognized.

"This is a bunch of cherries on the icing on the cake that was the gift of playing such a tortured and lonely human," said Jason Isaacs, who portrayed a suicidal father facing financial ruin on the show.

Beyonce also made the Emmys list. Her halftime performance during a National Football League game on Netflix was nominated for best live variety special.

Missing from the field was Netflix's popular Korean drama "Squid Game," while the final season of previous drama winner "The Handmaid's Tale" received just one nod.

Winners will be chosen by the roughly 26,000 performers, directors, producers and other members of the Television Academy.