Blue Beetle director Angel Manuel Soto explained the importance of the movie's post-credits scene to James Gunn's new DCU.
The latest DC movie is confirmed to feature two-post credits scenes, with some critics hinting that one of them teases more storytelling possibilities for the character.
As DC heads into a reboot, Gunn already announced that Xolo Maridueña's Blue Beetle is the DCU's first character, indicating that the character will continue with new adventures.
The Importance of Blue Beetle’s Post-Credits Tease Explained
In Blue Beetle, Jenny Kord told Jaime Reyes that her father, Ted, went missing and presumed dead.
However, in the movie's mid-credits scene, Ted's hidden Beetle bunker seemingly activated on its own. A surprising message from Ted Kord then played on the lair's computer screens, with him confirming that he's alive:
"Hello, hello! Oh my God, it's working. Whoever turned on my computer, get a message to my daughter Jenny Kord. Tell her I love her and I'm alive."
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Blue Beetle director Angel Manuel Soto confirmed that the reveal that Ted Kord is still alive was the plan all along:
“We had it written down [in the script]. We knew that was what we wanted our story to have.”
Soto then referenced James Gunn's plan to incorporate Booster Gold into the DC reboot, noting that "it felt like the right thing" to confirm that Ted Kord is still alive in Blue Beetle:
“We all love Ted Kord and Booster Gold, and knowing that James Gunn also has plans for Booster Gold, it felt like the right thing for us to continue with.”
In January 2023, DC Studios co-CEOs James Gunn and Peter Safran announced a new Booster Gold series is in the works as part of the DC slate coming under their watch.
Safran described the main hero as a "loser from the future who uses basic future technology to come back to today and pretend to be a superhero.”
Soto continued by teasing that the movie's post-credits scene presents many exciting storytelling possibilities for Ted Kord that could even involve Booster Gold:
“Ted Kord is still alive, he’s somewhere out there in the universe, and whatever the future holds for our hero is open to interpretation. So, whether that is Booster Gold or Ted Kord or if it is both of them [together], the possibility exists and it is something that we want to entertain.”
In DC Comics, Ted Kord and Booster Gold are popular due to their friendship, with both of them being involved in unexpected (and mischievous) escapades.
Speaking with USA Today, Soto pointed out that he wanted Blue Beetle's mid-credits scene to "give closure" to the storyline about Ted Kord being possibly dead:
“We wanted to not just answer the question but also let the world know that Jaime Reyes’ story is just starting.”
The Blue Beetle director ended by teasing that the movie's ending could explore many storytelling opportunities:
“By doing so, this opens the possibilities of not just new adventures (with) the Reyes family but also joining in with a different superhero if that’s what (DC Studios CEOs) James Gunn and Peter Safran want for them.”
Will Blue Beetle 2 Introduce the DCU’s Booster Gold?
Blue Beetle director Angel Manuel Soto's comments about Ted Kord's future present many exciting possibilities not just for the character, but for the DCU as well.
It is unknown if Booster Gold will first appear in a Blue Beetle sequel or his own DCU series, but a big-screen debut would be quite fitting for the fan-favorite character.
Blue Beetle actor Xolo Maridueña previously said that a sequel will only be made if audiences will "show up" in theaters. Soto also pointed out that "the [first] movie needs to make money for them to put more money in."
While the status of a follow-up is up in the air (considering the movie's low box office numbers), there are ways for Blue Beetle 2 to continue Ted Kord's story, such as the character being stuck with Booster Gold at a different point in time.
Whatever the case, Blue Beetle 2 needs to happen first before exploring a potential Booster Gold connection.
Blue Beetle is now playing in theaters worldwide.
