Have James Gunn and Peter Safran interfered in Blue Beetle?

When James Gunn and Peter Safran were appointed in new roles at DC Studios / Warner Bros. last year, there was plenty of apprehension among the filmmakers who were already heavily involved in making comic book movies for the studio.

Gunn is in charge of the artistic and creative direction of the new DC Extended Universe, and one of his first major decisions was to inform Henry Cavill that he would not be returning as Superman for DC despite making a cameo appearance at the end of Black Adam, after which the British actor suggested he would make subsequent appearances again as the Man of Steel.

What are the top 10 most popular shows on Amazon Prime right now?

Tuesday 10 February 2026, 14:38

What are the top 10 most popular shows on Netflix right now?

Monday 9 February 2026, 15:27

One of the productions that was already underway when Gunn took over was Blue Beetle, directed by Miguel Angel Soto, who has revealed that the Guardians of the Guardian filmmaker pretty much took a back seat.

“The studio always, generally, has their hands on it,” Soto explained to Total Film.

“As far as the essence of the story, liked what we were doing and they respected the vision and what we were trying to do with the film. They really did appreciate the fresh take, the nostalgic factor of how we start the film by taking the audience to see the family and fall in love with them for a prologue-of-sorts.”

READ MORE: James Gunn slams 'lazy' superhero movies of recent years

The movie tells the story of Jaime Reyes, a recent college graduate from a humble background who takes a job cleaning houses due to his family facing eviction from their home. While in the house of the mysterious Victoria Kord, Jaime becomes fused with an alien technology scarab which gives him superhuman abilities.

It stars Xolo Maridueña in the title role alongside Adriana Barraza, Damián Alcázar, Raoul Max Trujillo, Susan Sarandon, and George Lopez.

The movie is yet to be released, and Soto is desperate for it to be a success so he can fulfil his dream of making a franchise.

“I don't think I would be here talking with you if I didn't think that way,” he told Yahoo when asked whether he wants to make a trilogy.

“The way the machine works, the movie needs to make money for them to put more money in, but for us, we've always seen it that way.

“We love the story so much. We believe in the product so much. We believe in an actor so much. We couldn't help but think about where his journey was going to go while we were creating this film. So is it wish fulfilment? Are we calling it out to the universe? Sure.”