James Gunn's DC Universe Unveils Its First Batman Villain
- Aaron Fonseca
- 2 days ago
- 4 min read
The marketing for the DC Universe's third film has officially begun. The first look at Clayface, which arrives in theaters later this year, has been shared online by DC Studios and James Gunn.
After debuting the first trailer for Clayface at CinemaCon last week, the official Instagram account for the DCU movie has begun sharing in-universe magazine covers. The first, released on Monday, shows Tom Rhys Harries' Matt Hagen on the cover of an entertainment magazine, with the young actor being labeled a "rising star" in the industry. The post's caption reads, "A face you won't forget."
Gotham Medical Hints at Matt Hagen's Transformation Into Clayface
The second was released today and hints at the science that will be used to try to restore Matt Hagen's face after it gets disfigured by a gangster. Of course, comic book readers know that there's no happy ending for Matt, with the actor transformed into the villainous Clayface.
One of the stories featured in the Gotham Medical magazine is "The New Face of Regenerative Medicine," an exclusive interview with Caitlyn Corr. Naomi Ackie's character was initially reported to be named Dr. Caitlin Bates, so it stands to reason that the character, a fringe scientist and Hagen's love interest, was renamed Caitlyn Corr at some point during production, although this remains unconfirmed by DC at this time.
Clayface was greenlit by DC Studios in December 2024. The upcoming R-rated body horror movie was not originally part of DC Studios' first slate of titles for the DCU, but was added based on the strength of Mike Flanagan's screenplay alone. Gunn has described the project as "a great horror movie that is a great, smart, fun, fun, horror movie in a genre that I really love, which is body horror."
Flanagan had planned on directing Clayface, but was unfortunately too busy with his other horror projects, like Prime Video's Carrie and Universal's Exorcist reboot, to be in the director's chair for the DCU movie. Instead, Speak No Evil helmer James Watkins handled directorial duties for the movie, while Hossein Amini was tapped to rewrite the script.
Production on Clayface lasted from Aug. 31, 2025 to Nov. 1, 2025, on a reported budget of around $40 million. Max Minghella, Eddie Marsan, and David Dencik round out the movie's cast.
Clayface Arrives After Supergirl
The marketing for the DC Universe's third film has officially begun. The first look at Clayface, which arrives in theaters later this year, has been shared online by DC Studios and James Gunn.
After debuting the first trailer for Clayface at CinemaCon last week, the official Instagram account for the DCU movie has begun sharing in-universe magazine covers. The first, released on Monday, shows Tom Rhys Harries' Matt Hagen on the cover of an entertainment magazine, with the young actor being labeled a "rising star" in the industry. The post's caption reads, "A face you won't forget."
Gotham Medical Hints at Matt Hagen's Transformation Into Clayface
The second was released today and hints at the science that will be used to try to restore Matt Hagen's face after it gets disfigured by a gangster. Of course, comic book readers know that there's no happy ending for Matt, with the actor transformed into the villainous Clayface.
One of the stories featured in the Gotham Medical magazine is "The New Face of Regenerative Medicine," an exclusive interview with Caitlyn Corr. Naomi Ackie's character was initially reported to be named Dr. Caitlin Bates, so it stands to reason that the character, a fringe scientist and Hagen's love interest, was renamed Caitlyn Corr at some point during production, although this remains unconfirmed by DC at this time.
Clayface was greenlit by DC Studios in December 2024. The upcoming R-rated body horror movie was not originally part of DC Studios' first slate of titles for the DCU, but was added based on the strength of Mike Flanagan's screenplay alone. Gunn has described the project as "a great horror movie that is a great, smart, fun, fun, horror movie in a genre that I really love, which is body horror."
Flanagan had planned on directing Clayface, but was unfortunately too busy with his other horror projects, like Prime Video's Carrie and Universal's Exorcist reboot, to be in the director's chair for the DCU movie. Instead, Speak No Evil helmer James Watkins handled directorial duties for the movie, while Hossein Amini was tapped to rewrite the script.
Production on Clayface lasted from Aug. 31, 2025 to Nov. 1, 2025, on a reported budget of around $40 million. Max Minghella, Eddie Marsan, and David Dencik round out the movie's cast.
Clayface Arrives After Supergirl
Clayface will be the first DCU movie not tied to the Man of Steel. It will be released four months after Supergirl, a spinoff of last year's Superman. Craig Gillespie directed the upcoming superhero movie, which is inspired by Tom King's 2022 comic book series Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow.
Milly Alcock headlines Supergirl as its titular heroine. The movie follows the 21-year-old Kara Zor-El as she travels across the galaxy with Krypto, during which she meets a young girl named Ruthye and goes on a murderous quest for revenge. Ana Nogueira adapted the comic for the big screen.
A third DCU project will also be released in 2026, just not for the big screen. Lanterns, a new HBO series about the Green Lantern Corps, will arrive between Supergirl and Clayface in August. Kyle Chandler and Aaron Pierre lead the True Detective-inspired superhero show as the fan-favorite Green Lanterns Hal Jordan and John Stewart, respectively. Pierre will reprise his role in next summer's Man of Tomorrow, which began filming yesterday.
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