Why The Cast Of Blue Beetle Looks So Familiar

So many of the most popular superhero movies focus on powerful figures teaming up to fight for the greater good. Ensemble superhero films like "The Avengers" and "Justice League" are great examples of this, while even standalone superhero titles like "Thor: Ragnarok" see multiple crime fighters uniting for a greater cause. In the 2023 DC Comics blockbuster "Blue Beetle," there are no other superhero titans in sight, and the film's titular character is the only superhero on the screen... namely recent college graduate Jaime Reyes/Blue Beetle (Xolo Maridueña). However, the cast that director Angel Manuel Soto and company assembled for the project impresses enough to be the real-world equivalent of many superheroes joining forces for a grander purpose.

The star-studded cast of "Blue Beetle" includes actors ranging from legendary entertainment industry veterans to up-and-comers who have already demonstrated promise in their earliest roles. Connecting all the wildly varying careers of these performers is that their forays into acting stretch way back before their work in "Blue Beetle." While inhabiting a superhero blockbuster will likely give these actors a big visibility boost and help them win major roles in future shows and movies, "Blue Beetle" by no means represents the be-all and end-all of the filmographies of actors like Raoul Trujillo and Adriana Barraza. Here are all the places, both on the big and small screen, where you've seen the "Blue Beetle" actors before.

For viewers around the world, Xolo Maridueña's biggest pre-"Blue Beetle" role is handily his work as Miguel Diaz in "Cobra Kai." One of the lead characters on the Netflix hit that continues the legacy of the "Karate Kid" films, Maridueña established his acting chops and charisma in that program before utilizing those qualities as Jaime Reyes/Blue Beetle. Beyond "Cobra Kai," Maridueña has largely focused on television, including the main role of Victor Graham in the final three seasons of "Parenthood." These early days of acting also saw him guest-starring on the short-lived "Rush Hour" TV show and playing a small role in the 2013 indie title "Dealin' with Idiots," which marked his only appearance in a feature-length movie before "Blue Beetle."

Maridueña's acting exploits also include an appearance in the episode "Part 8" of the 2017 "Twin Peaks" revival season and a guest spot in a 2021 installment of the show "Wu-Tan: An American Saga." Additionally, he lent his pipes to animated shows like "Fast & Furious: Spy Races" and "The Boys Presents: Diabolical," as well as to another DC Comics adaptation, "Batwheels," in which Maridueña voiced Snowy the Snowcrawler. Needless to say, his second acting gig in a DC Comics property would be "slightly" more high-profile than that.

Before taking on the role of Jenny Kord in "Blue Beetle," Bruna Marquezine's acting credits were almost exclusively confined to the Brazilian television industry. Her work here in this domain included showing up in 153 episodes of the program "Aquele Beijo" and 143 installments of "Helena's Shadow." Though these programs may not be instantly familiar to many American moviegoers, they proved prominent enough to ensure that she garnered a notable reputation in her home country. In fact, Marquezine gained so much recognition in her native Brazil that she hosted the 2020 edition of the MTV MIAW Awards Brazil alongside Manu Gavassi. 

Her increasing profile as a performer also led her to eventually shift over to projects financed by American companies. These are the pop culture entities that many domestic "Blue Beetle" viewers will be more familiar with. One may have seen Marquezine's face while scrolling through Netflix and catching clips from her 2022 TV show "Maldivas." She also tackled a prominent role in the English-language dance movie "Breaking Through." However, by a considerable margin, "Blue Beetle" ranks as the most high-profile production Bruna Marquezine has appeared in to date and it serves as an introduction to her talents for many viewers. However, just because typical American viewers aren't well-versed in "God Save the King" lore doesn't mean that she didn't have a rich career before this superhero blockbuster.

Many of the "Blue Beetle" cast members can claim memorable feats. However, Adriana Barraza, who plays the scene-stealing character Nana Reyes in "Blue Beetle," is one of the few Oscar-nominated performers in the feature's main cast. That prestigious nomination came in the best supporting actress category for her work in the well-received 2006 movie "Babel" and it testifies to just how successful Barraza has been in her career. Over multiple decades of steady work, audiences have seen her in a wide range of projects including "Drag Me to Hell," "Dora and the Lost City of Gold," and the 2021 Blumhouse horror feature "Bingo Hell," in which she played the lead role, Lupita. Whatever genre you throw at this veteran performer, she'll handle it convincingly and with grace.

Astonishingly, "Blue Beetle" isn't even her first summer 2023 movie. Arthouse moviegoers already caught her delivering an unforgettable, restrained performance as Leticia in the Trace Lysette drama "Monica." In an assured demonstration of her range, Barraza proves just as masterful at delivering quiet demonstrations of concern or empathy in "Monica" as she does at executing pronounced comedic beats in the third act of "Blue Beetle." 

While Adriana Barraza represents an esteemed veteran in the "Blue Beetle" cast, Belissa Escobedo is an up-and-coming star who plays the spunky character Milagro Reyes. Audiences first saw Belissa Escobedo as a series regular in the short-lived ABC TV show "The Baker and the Beauty." That same year, she showed up in seven episodes of the Quibi program "Don't Look Deeper." Clearly, this performer's 2020 small-screen exploits weren't widely-viewed enterprises, though a pair of 2021 appearances on "American Horror Stories" put her more on people's radar.

Escobedo's most visible pre-"Blue Beetle" acting credit is one of the lead roles in "Hocus Pocus 2." Her character, the teenager Izzy, has a pivotal hand in unleashing the Sanderson sisters (Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimi) on the modern world. Given the massive viewership that "Hocus Pocus 2" generated, there's no doubt this production elevated the actor's profile considerably. For viewers of that popular Disney sequel, Escobedo will register as an enormously familiar face within "Blue Beetle." For many others, though, this young performer will, very understandably, attract notice as one of the freshest faces in the blockbuster's ensemble cast.  

American viewers unquestionably recognize Damián Alcázar best for his work as Lord Sopespian in the film "The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian." His other forays into English-language projects hailing from America include a featured role in the Netflix show "Narcos" as well as the 2019 feature film "Miss Bala." However, if one has seen Alcázar anywhere before his work as Alberto Reyes in "Blue Beetle" or in those other American productions, it's likely in his sea of acting credits in films originating from Mexico, among them the 2010 movie "Hell" and the 2004 feature "Cronicas."

If Alcázar's prolific film career in Mexico isn't familiar to viewers, then perhaps they've instead spotted Alcázar in one of his several lead roles in Mexican TV programs while channel-surfing. Such forays have included the 2015 TV show "El Dandy," an adaptation of the 1997 American film "Donnie Brasco." And he even expanded into Colombian television by taking on the role of Tuco Salamanca in "Metástasis," a local-language remake of "Breaking Bad." There's no shortage of places, both on the big and small screen, where one could see Damián Alcázar before his big role in "Blue Beetle."

If there's anywhere audiences have seen Raoul Trujillo, it's surely in the world of genre cinema. Thanks to one of his very first movie acting credits, "Scanners II: The New Order," Trujillo emerged as a common sight in heightened sci-fi, horror, and action fare. In the decades since his inaugural forays into acting, Trujillo has appeared in such other genre movies as "Highlander: The Final Dimension," "Cowboys & Aliens" and "Riddick." Arguably his most high-profile work as a film actor, though, has been playing the role of Rafael across the first two "Sicario" features. All these movies heavy on explosions and stylized plot elements served as the perfect precursors for his "Blue Beetle" role of Carpax, which entails Trujillo playing not only a villain but one with a super-suit that allows him to go toe to toe with Jaime Reyes/Blue Beetle.

Trujillo's sporadic television credits include "The Blacklist" and "Da Vinci's Demons," and he assumed leading man status in more recent TV productions like "Jamestown" and "Mayans M.C." With such a lengthy career as an actor across multiple television and film projects, there's no shortage of places where viewers could become familiar with Raoul Trujillo, though it's doubtful audiences have ever seen him portray someone quite as formidable as "Blue Beetle's" Carpax.

Elpidia Carrillo, who takes on the role of Jaime's mom Rocio Reyes in "Blue Beetle," has a very notable accomplishment to her name: she's the only actor to appear in both of the first two "Predator" movies. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Carl Weathers, and Danny Glover... even these high-profile actors cannot claim such an honor, but Carrillo can. Beyond her multiple appearances as Anna Gonsalves in the "Predator" movies, though, Carrillo has amassed a long list of acting credits. Among her many notable roles, she played a member of the main cast of Oliver Stone's "Salvador" and was part of an ensemble that included Glenn Close, Kathy Baker, and Robin Wright in the acclaimed 2005 drama "Nine Lives."

For younger pop culture viewers, though, arguably Carrillo's most impressive credit as an actor is the role of Sonia, Maddy's mother, in two episodes of "Euphoria" in 2019. Her other TV efforts have also included guest spots on shows like "Mayans M.C.," E.R.," and "Nashville," making her nearly as prolific on the small screen as she has been in movie theaters since starting in 1977. While her ubiquity as a performer is apparent, only the box office performance of "Blue Beetle" will tell if Rocio Reyes becomes the rare film character that, much like her role in the first two "Predator" movies, Carrillo gets to inhabit more than once.

Susan Sarandon's very first acting credit dates back all the way to 1970. Having worked in the acting business for more than 50 years, there's a bottomless well of options for where viewers have seen her before her villainous turn in "Blue Beetle" as Victoria Kord. Midnight movie fans undoubtedly instantly associate her with "The Rocky Horror Picture Show," while other camp devotees may instantly think of her from "The Witches of Eastwick." Then, of course, there's her role as one of the two titular leads of "Thelma & Louise," an iconic motion picture known all over the world. And remember how we noted that Adriana Berraza is one of the few Oscar-nominated actors in "Blue Beetle"? Well, Sarandon has been nominated for five Academy Awards and took home the golden statuette for best actress for her performance in "Dead Man Walking." 

Even for younger film geeks, there's a wealth of places in 21st-century cinema where Sarandon has left her mark. Key roles in late-2000s family movies like "Enchanted" and "Speed Racer," for instance, introduced Sarandon to a new generation of moviegoers, and she also appeared in the Lonely Island viral video sensation "Motherlover." When she kicked things off as an actor in 1970, there was no way Sarandon could've imagined her career would entail so many different, iconic properties spanning such a wide array of genres. However, she's managed to achieve just that and, in the process, ensure that she's an incredibly familiar face to anyone sitting down to watch "Blue Beetle."

In 2019, "Blue Beetle" supporting actor Harvey Guillén exploded onto everybody's radar with his loveable turn as Guillermo de la Cruz in "What We Do in the Shadows." Immediately becoming the scene-stealing fan-favorite character on this sleeper hit show, Guillén's profile as an actor shot up right away. In the years following "What We Do in the Shadows," Guillén has become a familiar sight for many viewers thanks to his work on other TV shows like "Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist" and "Reacher." "Blue Beetle" serves as the biggest live-action feature that Guillén has appeared in to date, but he previously also enjoyed turns in smaller indie titles like "Werewolves Within" and "I'm Totally Fine." 

If any of those on-camera roles don't ring a bell for certain "Blue Beetle" viewers, then perhaps Guillén's voice will be far more recognizable. A variety of famous animated TV shows and movies have utilized voice work from Guillén in the last few years, including "Archer" and "The Owl House." The most famous of these gigs, though, was voicing the eager canine Perrito in the blockbuster sequel "Puss in Boots: The Last Wish." In just a few short years after his breakout role in "What We Do in the Shadows," Guillén has amassed many notable and highly visible roles, including his performance in "Blue Beetle."

An interesting anomaly in the main cast of "Blue Beetle," Becky G is the sole actor confined to a voiceover-only role. Playing the entity called Khaji-Da, Becky G does the speaking for the creation inside the Scarab that takes over the body of Jaime Reyes. Functioning as Jaime's own J.A.R.V.I.S., Khaji-Da offers Becky G plenty of opportunities to deliver amusing line deliveries, but she never gets to appear on-screen. Strangely, this quality of her presence in "Blue Beetle" mirrors how many moviegoers are likely familiar with Becky G, since this performer is first and foremost a musician. Thanks to her bevy of hit tunes, viewers are already accustomed to just hearing Becky G's disconnected voice through the radio or streaming apps without ever seeing her physical form.

Superhero movie fans, though, previously saw Becky G on the big screen through her work as Trini Kwan/Yellow Ranger in the 2017 feature "Power Rangers." That blockbuster is one of her few forays into acting which doesn't involve playing a fictionalized version of herself, with other rare examples of this including a key role in the 2018 family movie "A.X.L." and a pair of appearances on the TV show "Empire." 

The role of Uncle Rudy Reyes in "Blue Beetle" ranks as just one of many gigs that incredibly prolific comedian George Lopez has secured over the years. Most notably, his successful 2000s sitcom "George Lopez" helped the veteran performer reach a new level of notoriety with audiences. Its reputation has also endured throughout the years, with retrospective pieces lauding the project for offering up a rare venue for Latinx creatives to have their perspectives heard in the largely white-dominated space of primetime TV. Since that groundbreaking experience, Lopez has been a constant fixture of the smaller screen and headlined several other TV comedies, including the recent NBC program "Lopez vs Lopez."

In terms of films, Lopez has largely stuck to his comfort zone of comedic fare with supporting roles in 2000s yukfests like "Balls of Fury" and "Swing Vote." Younger viewers, however, may feel a nostalgic attachment to Lopez's various characters in "The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 3-D," while he also showed up as one of the countless recognizable faces in the late Garry Marshall's hit ensemble comedy "Valentine's Day." Lopez's work in movies like "Real Women Have Curves" has its fans as well. All in all, there's no denying that his television and film output turned him into one of the most immediately recognizable players in the "Blue Beetle" cast.