Xolo Maridueña is set to return as Blue Beetle in Man of Tomorrow, the upcoming sequel to Superman. The actor said DC Studios co-chief James Gunn personally called him with the news after Maridueña’s future as the DC superhero remained uncertain following the 2023 film.
Maridueña recalled receiving the call while he was in Japan with friends, shortly before the Los Angeles premiere of Practical Magic 2.
“I was in Japan with my friends; nobody knew anything,” Maridueña recalled on the red carpet at the Los Angeles premiere of “Practical Magic 2. “And I just see, like the Bat-phone, my phone rings [and it’s] James Gunn. All my friends look at me, and I had to leave the room. I came back, and I was like, ‘Off the record, don’t tell anyone, but we’re coming back,’ and I’m so excited for people to see where Blue Beetle ends up.”
The actor explained that he was not sure whether he would wear the Blue Beetle suit again after his standalone movie. He said he feels “humbled” by the chance to join the new DC Universe.
“There’s never a guarantee with anything, bro,” he said. “I mean, you know this, stuff flips on a dime, and I know that it’s not always like a merit-based system. So there’s so much that’s out of my control, but I am just the most humbled of James and the greater DC team for folding us in, Indiana Jones style.”
Blue Beetle returns in Man of Tomorrow
Man of Tomorrow, the follow-up to 2025’s Superman, will see Superman join forces with his arch-nemesis Lex Luthor to stop Brainiac, an intergalactic super genius. David Corenswet and Nicholas Hoult are set to reprise their roles as Superman and Lex Luthor, respectively.
The cast also includes Lars Eidinger, Aaron Pierre, Nathan Fillion, Milly Alcock, Isabela Merced and Skyler Gisondo.
Xolo Maridueña on Practical Magic 2
Earlier in the interview, Maridueña described working with Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman on Practical Magic 2 as “surreal.” He said he was so excited after his first day on set that he wrote down every detail he could remember in his journal.
“The first day on set with the two of them, you’re having this third-person moment where they’re not only actors that you’ve witnessed your whole life, but also characters that are so electric,” Maridueña explained. “To be in the middle of this Venn diagram, my journal was full that night of all of the stuff, all of the little gems, all of the happy accidents, all of the morsels of knowledge that they give. They are outstanding class acts.”
Practical Magic 2, which arrives in theaters on Sept. 11, follows Sally, Gillian and their family of witches as they attempt to break a generational curse that prevents them from falling in love. Stockard Channing, Dianne Wiest, Cassie Bradley, Joey King, Maisie Williams and Lee Pace also star.
Susanne Bier directs the film from a screenplay by Akiva Goldsman, Georgia Pritchett and Kelly Marcel.
