James Gunn's DCU Has Found Its Spider-Man

Published Jul 19, 2026, 10:00 PM EDT Arielle Port started as a TV producer, developing content for Netflix (Firefly Lane, Brazen) and Hallmark (The Santa Stakeout, A Christmas Treasure) before transitioning into entertainment journalism. Her love of story went from interest to lifelong passion while at The University of Pennsylvania, where she fell in with a student-run web series, Classless TV, and it was a gateway drug. Arielle Port has been a Writer for Screen Rant since August 2024. She lives in Los Angeles with her boyfriend and more importantly, her cat, Boseman. The new DCU under James Gunn and Peter Safran had a promising, if somewhat modest, beginning with 2025’s Superman. Written and directed by Gunn, Superman was a fresh start after years of uncertainty for the franchise. However, the DCU has not completely abandoned the previous era, with characters such as Peacemaker and Amanda Waller carrying over from the DCEU. Writing and directing 2027's Superman follow-up, Man of Tomorrow, Gunn has emphasized that it is not a traditional direct sequel but part of a broader “Superman Saga,” with Kal-El central but part of a team including Nicholas Hoult’s Lex Luthor. While many characters are rumored to be in the movie, it was announced that Xolo Maridueña’s Blue Beetle will return in Man of Tomorrow. Jaime Reyes is a college graduate just worried about helping his family keep their home in Miami-inspired Palmera City when he is accidentally imbued with the superpowers of the Scarab, transforming him into the Blue Beetle. Although the movie was not a box-office success, Blue Beetle was widely praised for its charm, humor, and heartfelt depiction of Jaime's close-knit family. As one of the newer and less-established heroes from the previous DC era, Blue Beetle’s return in Man of Tomorrow is an especially pleasant surprise. While the Scarab gives Blue Beetle powers greater than the average street-level hero, Jaime is a relatively grounded, localized crimefighter. However, there is a perfect MCU comparison for a young superhero leveling up within a larger cinematic universe: Spider-Man. Man Of Tomorrow Is Turning Blue Beetle Into The DCU's Spider-Man Image via MovieStillsDB Blue Beetle could become the DCU's answer to Spider-Man. Like Peter Parker, Jaime Reyes is a young, relatable, relatively grounded superhero whose greatest connection is to his family and community. He is a young adult still figuring things out, let alone how to live with abilities that are far beyond anything he ever expected to possess. The MCU understood how much fun it could be to throw Spider-Man into a world far bigger than the one he knew. In Avengers: Infinity War, Peter goes from being a friendly neighborhood hero in Queens to fighting Thanos' forces in space after an alien attack interrupts a school field trip. His arrival gives the movie some of its funniest moments while also providing a youthful counterbalance to the more tense dynamic between Iron Man and Doctor Strange. Man of Tomorrow could do something similar with Blue Beetle. Confirmed Man of Tomorrow Characters Character Actor Previous DC Property Superman / Clark Kent David Corenswet Superman (2025) Lex Luthor © Warner Bros. /Courtesy Everett Collection Nicholas Hoult Superman (2025) Lois Lane Rachel Brosnahan Superman (2025) Supergirl / Kara Zor-El Milly Alcock Supergirl (2026) Blue Beetle / Jaime Reyes Xolo Maridueña Blue Beetle (2023) Brainiac Image via Max Lars Eidinger New Character Maxima Adria Arjona New Character Green Lantern / John Stewart Aaron Pierre Lanterns (2026) Green Lantern / Guy Gardner Nathan Fillion Peacemaker Season 2 & Superman (2025) Hawkgirl / Kendra Saunders Isabela Merced Peacemaker Season 2 & Superman (2025) Mister Terrific / Michael Holt Edi Gathegi Superman (2025) Rick Flag Sr. Frank Grillo Creature Commandos (2024), Peacemaker Season 2 Jaime has no established relationship with Superman or Supergirl, at least for now, but the Scarab gives him a natural connection to the larger cosmic side of the DCU. By the end of Blue Beetle, Jaime had begun mastering his powers, but he was still only beginning to understand the full capabilities of the sentient alien technology bonded to him. The Scarab puts Blue Beetle on a higher power level, while Jaime's devotion to his family and neighborhood keeps him grounded. His youthful, quippy energy could provide a welcome contrast to the more stoic Superman and Lex Luthor in Man of Tomorrow, just as Spider-Man's presence brought humor and humanity to Infinity War. Blue Beetle's DCU Return Is Great, But Needs To Be Done Right Blue Beetle remains one of the most underrated DCEU movies, but much of its charm came from the specific world built around Jaime Reyes. The Miami-inspired Palmera City gave the movie a distinct sense of place, while the smaller stakes of the Reyes family trying to save their home grounded the origin story. That is why his return in Man of Tomorrow needs to be handled carefully. Plucking Jaime out of Palmera City and placing him in a larger ensemble dealing with a high-level threat like Brainiac could risk stripping away the very qualities that made his movie so charming. Blue Beetle needs to bring something that Superman or Lex Luthor can’t provide, and the answer may lie in the Scarab itself. If the alien technology is somehow essential to the movie's larger conflict, Jaime could have a meaningful role to play against Brainiac. Blue Beetle and Superman are not tonally incompatible, and if anyone can blend characters from different franchises and tones, it is James Gunn. However, Jaime's return should not come at the expense of what made him special. The best version of Blue Beetle in Man of Tomorrow will be the one who brings the spirit of Palmera City and the Reyes family with him, even if Man of Tomorrow takes him far beyond them. Man of Tomorrow Release Date July 9, 2027 Director James Gunn Writers James Gunn Producers Peter Safran, James Gunn Prequel(s) Superman Franchise(s) Superman, DCU Cast Nicholas Hoult Lex Luthor Rachel Brosnahan Lois Lane Man of Tomorrow marks a new chapter in the Superman saga, as Superman teams up with longtime adversary Lex Luthor to face the formidable villain Brainiac. Blue Beetle 7/10 Release Date August 18, 2023 Runtime 128 minutes Blue Beetle is a superhero-action film that follows college graduate Jaime Reyes as he inherits the powers of a mysterious alien relic known as the Scarab, bestowing him with a powerful exosuit that gives him unearthly capabilities. Now an inheritor of a power he isn't sure he deserves, Jaime will become a hero to protect the ones he loves.