Who are Xolo Mariduena’s parents? How they’ve kept him grounded

Xolo Mariduena’s character in Blue Beetle, Jaime Reyes, transforms into a superhero for the first time in front of his Latino family. Unlike other DC superheroes who hide their alter egos from their loved ones, Jaime Reyes’ family gets a front-row ticket to their son’s transformation into a superhero. 

This piece looks at Xolo Mariduena’s parents, family, and ethnicity. 

Xolo Mariduena credits his parents for helping him achieve success

Xolo Mariduena was born on 9th June 2001 to Omar G. Ramirez and Carmelita Ramirez-Sanchez in Los Angeles, California. Xolo has Mexican, Ecuadorian, and Cuban roots. He told Glitter that his name is Nahuatl for Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky.

Omar is a music producer, and Carmelita is a radio host. Therefore, it was almost inevitable that Xolo and his sisters would get introduced to the entertainment industry. 

Xolo was 10 when he started modeling and appearing in advertisements. Aged 11, he landed his breakthrough role in Parenthood, a comedy-drama television series. Xolo told Teen Vogue that his mother familiarized herself with the acting industry as fast as possible to guide him. 

“Things wouldn’t be possible without her,” Xolo said. He added that his rapid career progression surprised him and his family: “It all feels very surreal. Because in the grand scheme of things, it’s happened fairly quickly. Five years is not a lot of time to kind of be at the point that I’m at right now. Sometimes it feels a little overwhelming, for my family especially.” 

Xolo told the outlet that one of his key aims is giving back to his family. “I’m trying to make sure that everything I do doesn’t overshadow anything that my family has done,” he stated. “The whole reason I’m able to accomplish any of this is for my family.”

As of September 2022, Xolo was still living with her parents. He told The Hollywood Reporter that it’s part of the reason he rarely curses in interviews: “That’s me still living with my parents. My family instilled these values early on. I don’t want to make too much noise.”

Xolo is a world-renowned television star set to become even more popular when Blue Beetle premieres. However, at home, nobody treats him like a celebrity. Xolo told Glitter:

“I live a super regular life, go to a neighborhood school, have friends that I’ve been kicking it with since I was 10 and do chores around the house. My family makes sure that both my sister and I have as well-rounded and filled life as possible.”

Xolo opines that the representation of Latinos on screen has to evolve

Xolo has several firsts to his name: he was the first Latino actor to play a leading role in the Karate Kid franchise; he’ll be the first Latino superhero to headline a film when Blue Beetle premieres. 

The actor told Schon! that his mother was overjoyed when she learned that he had booked the leading role in Blue Beetle: 

“My mom is a big comic book fan and she is a hundred per cent Chicana, so inherently she always highlighted the Latino superheroes as I was growing up. Whether that was Blue Beetle, Nova or Araña, she was a big proponent of this comic book world.”

Xolo told Teen Vogue that the portrayal of Latinos on screen has to change. He told the outlet that he grew up seeing Latinos in minor roles or playing shady characters. Xolo explained the impact of such representation:

“There’s something subconscious happening in your brain when you’re seeing yourself. People that look like you, sound like you, and come from a similar background [are] portrayed negatively in every single thing you see.”

Xolo said that roles like Blue Beetle will help change people’s perceptions about Latinos. “It’s special to see yourself portrayed in a positive manner,” Xolo told Teen Vogue. “With this project, people are going to realize that the Latino experience is not a monolith.”

Xolo’s meteoric rise over the past decade can be attributed to his talent and good manners. He told Glitter that his parents taught him not to be a jerk:

“Don’t be a jerk. My parents always say that, if they end up raising humans who aren’t jerks, they’ve done their job. So yeah, I guess that’s the mantra: don’t be a jerk. They actually don’t use the word ‘jerk’ but I’m keeping it PG here.”