Susan Sarandon cast as a villain in DC's Blue Beetle film

Farewell, Sharon Stone. Another star with an alliterative name has taken over the role as a villain in Warner Bros. Discovery’s Blue Beetle film. The Wrap reports that Thelma and Louise star Susan Sarandon has been officially cast as Victoria Kord—who Sharon Stone was previously in talks to play—a mysterious character created just for this film.

Though she doesn’t appear in the comics, there’s at least one hint to Sarandon’s character’s connection to the film’s titular hero Jaime Reyes AKA Blue Beetle. Before El Paso teenager Jaime Reyes took on the moniker, a guy by the name of Ted Kord held the title of Blue Beetle. He even had a power-hungry uncle, who Ted would go on and stop from taking over the world. There’s the possibility that Sarandon’s Victoria Kord could be a gender-bent version of Ted’s uncle, setting up an appearance for the bug suit’s previous wearer to meet Jaime.

Blue Beetle will star Cobra Kai’s Xolo Maridueña as Jaime Reyes, a teenager who happens across alien tech called the Blue Beetle Scarab. In a mix of horror and a coming-of-age story, the scarab fuses to Jaime’s spine, giving him an exo-skeleton of armor that he fights crime in as the Blue Beetle. This marks the first time that a Latino character will be the lead of a live-action superhero film.

Starring alongside Maridueña is George Lopez (George Lopez), Harvey Guillén (What We Do In The Shadows), Raoul Max Trujillo (Riddick), Elpidia Carrillo (Predator), Adriana Barraza, Bruna Marquezine, Damián Alcázar, and Belissa Escobedo.

Angel Manuel Soto (The Farm) will direct the DC superhero film, with a script written by Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer (Miss Bala). John Rickard, Zev Foreman, David Siegel and Walter Hamada will join as producers.

Originally destined to premiere on HBO Max, Blue Beetle is set to release theatrically August 18, 2023.