DC's BLUE BEETLE Movie Will Be Helmed by CHARM CITY KINGS Director Angel Manuel Soto

Warner Bros. and DC Entertainment are moving forward with their big-screen adaptation of Blue Beetle. The studio has hired Charm City Kings director Angel Manuel Soto to helm the film. The news comes from The Wrap, who also points out that this will be the first superhero movie starring a Latino character.

In the comics there are three different versions of Blue Beetle, and the movie will focus on Mexican-American teenager Jaime Reyes, who is the third character to assume the mantle of the Blue Beetle after Dan Garret and Ted Kord. The character was created by Keith Giffen, John Rogers, and Cully Hamner.

Jaime Reyes discovered the Blue Beetle scarab on the way home from school with two of his best friends Paco and Brenda, half-buried in a disused lot. Reyes took the scarab home, curious as to what it might be. That night, the scarab came alive, and grafted itself to the base of Jaime’s spine, and provided him with a suit of extraterrestrial armor which can be modified to enhance his speed and strength, as well as to create weapons, wings and shields.

Soto said in a statement, “It is an honor to direct Blue Beetle, the first Latino superhero film for DC. I want to sincerely thank everyone at Warner Bros. and DC for trusting me to bring Jaime Reyes to life. I can’t wait to make history together.”

The script for the film is being written by Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer, who also wrote Universal’s Scarface reboot and Sony’s Miss Bala.

WB is looking to start production in the fall with Zev Foreman executive-producing for Warner Bros.