The Philippines is the only country with an exclusive local voice for Blue Beetle

It’s an exciting time for Pinoy DC fans as the upcoming Blue Beetle film will be featuring local artist, Inka Magnaye, as the voice behind the Scarab!

In a media event, Magnaye talked about what it meant for her to be called upon to be part of the Blue Beetle cast as not just someone who has been dreaming about the opportunity but also for what it means to the Filipino community. 

“Ever since I was a kid, I’ve been dreaming of something like this. Me and my siblings would always mess around and dub over cartoons we watch on the television and now here I am, being a part of a DC superhero film. It’s surreal,” says Magnaye.

Magnaye, known for her soothing and dynamic voice being featured in various podcasts Tiktoks, events, and voiceovers became an online sensation when she started her content creation journey during the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The executives at Warner Bros. Philippines were so impressed with Magnayo’s work that hiring her was a no-brainer. “There was no audition involved. When the film was being made, we really only had her [Inka Magnaye] in mind,” says Bonch Santos, Marketing Lead at Warner Bros. Entertainment.

When asked about the type of preparation that was done for the role and how different her approach was, Magnaye reflects on her veteran experience, “I’ve been voice acting since I was 5 years old so I did my usual of doing the research and not speaking for a couple of days to preserve my vocals. It wasn’t really physical but more in the sense of mental. It was recognizing the gravity of the project. Being a part of the DC universe adds a whole different dimension to it and so I wanted to do it justice.”

As soon as Magnaye stepped in to do her recording sessions for Blue Beetle, she knew she only had one shot to make it all happen. Despite her excitement, she felt like there was a big responsibility to her child self, who manifested her opportunities, and to the rest of the Filipino people to represent them well. 

Magnaye revealed that the Philippines is the only country to ever have its own local voice to be represented in Blue Beetle, “I’m the only one doing this for the film. No other region is doing what we did.”

Portraying the Scarab in Blue Beetle came as a pleasant surprise for Magnaye. She mentions that there was a lot of work done in making sure that the voice sounded personal but at the same time, synthetic. “It was important to me that I represented the Philippines in my own unique way while also doing my best AI voice. That was a fun thing to balance,” Magnaye said. 

Magnaye revealed that she only knows parts of the movie that she worked on. “I haven’t even seen the whole thing and so I’m just as excited as everyone is to finally watch it.” If there’s one thing to look forward to, it’s the relationships between Xolo Maridueña’s Jaime Reyes and his family and seeing all that develop while also adding Inka Magnaye’s Scarab into the equation. It’s the type of film that everyone can enjoy. 

Blue Beetle will be released in PH cinemas on August 16 for everyone to see.