Warner Bros. and DC Studios have dropped the official trailer for Clayface. And they’ve injected a heavy dose of pure body horror into the DC Universe just in time for this Halloween season. And we can’t wait!
A Star Is Torn
Tom Rhys Harries takes center stage in the title role of Gotham’s legendary, mud-slinging villain. Billed as DC Studios’ first true dive into horror, Clayface charts one man’s gruesome descent from Hollywood golden boy to revenge-obsessed monster. It’s a tragic dive into lost identity, toxic love, and the terrifying price of reckless scientific ambition.
Matt Hagen’s meteoric rise from Gotham street kid to Hollywood leading man is tragically cut short when a local crime boss’s actions leave him horribly disfigured. Abandoned by his team and with nothing left, Matt seeks out a cutting-edge treatment. It miraculously returns him to his former self. However, unexpectedly affects his grip on reality, spiraling him down a destructive path of all-consuming revenge.
The Talent Behind the Terror
Directing the chaos is James Watkins (The Woman in Black, Speak No Evil). He’s working from a script co-written by modern horror titan Mike Flanagan (The Haunting of Hill House, Doctor Sleep) and Hossein Amini (Drive). So, you know it’s gonna be good!
DC Studios co-CEO Peter Safran has already teased the project. They are describing it as “an incredible body horror film that reveals a compelling origin of a classic Batman villain.”
Rounding out the killer ensemble cast alongside Harries are Naomi Ackie, David Dencik, Max Minghella, Eddie Marsan, Nancy Carroll, and Joshua James.
A Brief History of Clayface: From Slasher to Shapeshifter
Long before he was a terrifying mass of living mud, Clayface was born out of classic Universal Monster cinema.
Created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger in Detective Comics #40 in the ’40s. The first Clayface was Basil Karlo—a disgraced B-movie actor who went on a theatrical killing spree wearing a terrifying clay mask after being snubbed for a remake. No superpowers, just pure slasher vengeance.
The character was revamped in 1961 with Matt Hagen (Detective Comics #298), a treasure hunter who fell into a pool of radioactive protoplasm, gaining the ability to shapeshift his body at will.
Enter Preston Payne (Clayface III), a S.T.A.R. Labs scientist in 1978 whose attempt to cure his acromegaly with Hagen’s DNA left him as a melting, contagious monster—laying the groundwork for the visceral body horror the new film embraces.
The “Matt Hagen as a disfigured actor” storyline famously reached peak tragedy in Batman: The Animated Series (1992). It’s an iconic origin arc that clearly heavily inspired this new cinematic take.
Get Ready for the Horror
Clayface hits the big screen come October 23, 2026. Be sure to get your tickets early because we expect the crowds to be huge! Watch the trailer below.
