A classic villain from Batman’s rogues gallery will finally make his film debut in the new DCU. Deadline reports that DC Studios has officially greenlit Mike Flanagan‘s “Clayface” movie, which he’ll write the script for as he preps his upcoming “Exorcist” reboot. But Flanagan won’t direct, so expect James Gunn and Peter Safran to start their search soon.
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Flanagan’s “Clayface” movie goes back to 2021, when the horror filmmaker tweeted his desire to approach the shapeshifting villain as a “horror/thriller/tragedy.” Then, Flanagan met with Gunn and Safran last March to pitch the film, with reports that it’d involve Clayface not being a bad guy at all. Now, it’s unclear if the upcoming film will be part of the main DCU slate or a standalone Elseworlds film, like Matt Reeves‘ “The Batman” movies. Some sources that Flanagan pitched a standalone film, while others say Clayface will appear in “The Batman 2.” Time should clear up the confusion there.
Whatever the case, expect “Clayface” to be at the very end of the current DCU pipeline. So it’ll hit theaters after other Batman-related projects like Reeves’ upcoming sequel, which arrives on October 6, 2026, and “The Brave And The Bold,” which features the debut of the new DCU Batman. And “Clayface” will probably reach audiences after the upcoming Bane and Deathstroke movie, too (if that goes beyond active development). Meanwhile, Flanagan has several upcoming projects, including a TV adaptation of Stephen King‘s “Carrie” for Prime Video, among others.
Clayface is one of Batman’s most notorious adversaries in comics, but he’s never made it to the big screen. The shapeshifting villain debuted in “Detective Comics #40” in June 1940 as actor Basil Karlo, who turns to a life of crime after adopting a character he portrays in a horror film. But there’s been several iterations of the character in the comics since then, with the most famous one being a clay-like creature who manipulates his physical form. Clayface has appeared in lots of other Batman media outside of films, however, with “Batman: The Animated Series” take on the character one of the most revered.
So what parts of the Clayface lore will Flanagan utilize in his rendition of the character? It may be a while before DC fans find out, because it’s likely this project won’t start shooting for another couple of years. But it’s another hint at what audiences should expect from the DCU; is that a good or a bad thing?
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