Blue Beetle Director and Star Respond to Backlash at ‘Batman’s a Fascist’ Line

A line in the recent Blue Beetle trailer seems to have angered some DC fans. At one point, Uncle Rudy (played by George Lopez) calls Batman a “fascist” and while it’s a bit of a mic drop moment, some fans weren’t impressed.

Now, director Ángel Manuel Soto and star Xolo Maridueña have responded. “We always wanted to have fun with the way Rudy talks about other superheroes,” said Soto. “So, to the people who got mad at it, give us a chance. We’re just trying to have fun with the characters that we love.”

“Everybody in our movie loves Batman and Superman and Flash,” he added. “And of course, we have criticisms about all of them, as we all should. But that doesn’t mean that we hate Batman. We love Batman.”

Blue Beetle stars Maridueña as Jaime Reyes, a teenage boy who finds himself bonded with a piece of alien technology that summons a powerful “world-destroying” weapon in the form of a high-tech armored suit.

He’s the latest DC hero to head to the big screen and will effectively kick off the DCU. However, Maridueña was a bit more direct with his response:

“F that! Maybe Jaime and the audience don’t agree with Rudy, but you’re allowed to have your opinion,” he said. “That’s okay… If you felt some type of way about it, that was the point. So, I think if you agree with it, if you don’t agree with it, it was placed there for a reason. And you know, all of the people who have their Batman shrines at home can keep them there and they don’t have to worry.”

The pair have previously discussed the film’s Latino roots, calling Blue Beetle “unapologetically Latino”.

Blue Beetle debuts in theaters on August 18, 2023.

Want to read more about Blue Beetle? Find out more about DC’s newest big-screen hero and check out our favourite Blue Beetle comics.

Ryan Leston is an entertainment journalist and film critic for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.