'Blue Beetle' Global Box Office Loses Its Wings

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The Big Picture

  • Blue Beetle 's box office performance has been underwhelming, with a worldwide total of $81.1 million so far.
  • Despite hopes of bringing DC closer to a new beginning, the movie's disappointing numbers suggest disinterest from audiences.
  • The superhero adventure stars Xolo Maridueña in the titular role.

A week after it's underwhelming box office debut, Blue Beetle continues its complicated box office run, with a new worldwide total of $81.1 million. While it was hoped that Ángel Manuel Soto's origin story about a young, charismatic hero would bring the DC brand closer to the new beginning James Gunn and Peter Safran have planned for it, it's evident that audiences aren't showing plenty of interest for the new release. When compared to its budget, it's starting to look as though one of the last entries in the current iteration of the DC Extended Universe will also become one of its most disappointing installments.

Last week, Blue Beetle opened to an underwhelming $25.5 million at the domestic box office, releasing just after an era when most superhero stories that flew towards the big screen were able to find high numbers within their ticket sales. Jaime Reyes' (Xolo Maridueña) adventure hasn't been able to attract viewers internationally either, with the movie failing to earn $100 million from all over the world after two weekends of playing in most viewing formats available in theaters. Not even Victoria Kord (Susan Sarandon) could plan such an unfortunate outcome for the titular hero.

Blue Beetle was one of the final DC movies Warner Bros. had scheduled for their current version of the franchise. While Gunn has previously stated that Jaime Reyes could appear in projects belonging to his vision for the brand, the first official movie set in the new universe will be Superman: Legacy, directed by Gunn himself and currently scheduled to premiere in the summer of 2025. There are still a couple of weeks left until Blue Beetle's box office performance can be seen in the big picture but, for now, things aren't looking great for the young hero.

What's Next for the DC Universe?

Before audiences can be introduced to the vision James Gunn and Peter Safran have for their new universe, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom will see the return of Jason Momoa in the titular role, in a sequel to the only movie in the DC Extended Universe to gross over $1 billion. After viewers dive deep into Atlantis for a second time, next year could likely see the debut of an animated television series set in the new DCU titled Creature Commandos, before Superman: Legacy makes viewers believe a man can fly in 2025. The future may finally look bright for a franchise that has needed a silver lining for quite some time.

You can check out Collider's interview with Ángel Manuel Soto below:

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