DCU co-chiefs James Gunn and Peter Safran have shed light on the much-anticipated movie "Clayface," confirming its place within the DCU and its R rating. Clayface, a notable villain from Gotham City with the unique ability to morph his clay-like body into any form, is a long-standing adversary of Batman. The character was first introduced as Basil Karlo in Detective Comics #40 back in 1940.
DC Studios recently announced that "Clayface" will hit theaters on September 11, 2026. The decision to focus on Clayface was influenced by the success of HBO’s "The Penguin" series. Horror maestro Mike Flanagan is set to pen the script, while Lynn Harris and "The Batman" director Matt Reeves will co-produce the film.
Confirmed DCU Projects
11 Images
During a DC Studios presentation attended by IGN, Gunn and Safran emphasized the importance of integrating Clayface into the DCU, distinguishing it from Matt Reeves’ "The Batman Epic Crime Saga." Gunn stated, "Clayface is totally DCU." Safran added, "The only thing that's in Matt's world, his Crime Saga that he's telling, is the Batman Trilogy, the Penguin series, that's in that lane. So still under DC Studios, still under us. We have an incredible relationship with Matt, but those are the only things."
Gunn highlighted that Clayface's inclusion in the DCU was crucial as it provides an origin story for a classic Batman villain, fitting perfectly into their broader universe. He noted that Clayface wouldn't fit within the more grounded narrative of Reeves’ saga, explaining, "It was very outside of the grounded non-super metahuman characters in Matt's world."
Safran revealed that DC Studios is currently negotiating with James Watkins, the director of "Speak No Evil," to helm "Clayface," with filming scheduled to commence this summer. He described the film as "an incredible body horror film that reveals a compelling origin of a classic Batman villain," emphasizing the strength of Flanagan’s screenplay.
Safran expressed excitement about the project, noting that while Clayface might not be as well-known as The Penguin or The Joker, its story is equally compelling and terrifying. Throughout the presentation, Safran referred to "Clayface" as "experimental" and an "indie style chiller," while Gunn described it as "pure f***ing horror, like, totally real. Their version of that movie, it is so real and true and psychological and body horror and gross."
Gunn confirmed that "Clayface" will be rated R, emphasizing the film's intense horror elements. He shared that when he and Safran first reviewed the script, they were thrilled by its quality and the opportunity to produce such a unique horror film within the DCU, stating, "I think that one of the things Peter and I talked about when we first got the script is if we were producing movies five years ago when we were doing Belko Experiment and all of that stuff, and somebody had brought us this horror script called Clayface about this guy, we would have died to have produced this movie, because it was just a really excellent body horror script, and the fact that it's in the DCU is just a plus."
