James Gunn on Why Clayface Film Joins DCU, Not Reeves' Batman Saga

DCU co-chiefs James Gunn and Peter Safran have recently shed light on the much-anticipated film, *Clayface*, which is set to be a part of the DCU canon and carry an R rating. Clayface, known as one of Batman's oldest adversaries, has the unique ability to morph his clay-like body into any form, a power that originated with the character Basil Karlo, first introduced in Detective Comics #40 back in 1940.

DC Studios announced last month that *Clayface* is slated for release on September 11, 2026. The decision to focus on this character was influenced by the success of HBO's *The Penguin* series. Horror maestro Mike Flanagan will pen the script, while Lynn Harris and *The Batman* director Matt Reeves are set to produce.

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During a DC Studios presentation attended by IGN, Gunn and Safran elaborated on why Clayface was chosen for the DCU rather than Matt Reeves' *The Batman Epic Crime Saga*. "Clayface is totally DCU," Gunn affirmed. "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," Safran explained. "So still under DC Studios, still under us. We have an incredible relationship with Matt, but those are the only things."

Gunn emphasized the importance of including Clayface in the DCU, stating, "It was important that Clayface be part of the DCU. It's an origin story for a classic Batman villain that we want to have in our world." He also noted that Clayface wouldn't have been suitable for Reeves' more grounded universe, as it is "very outside of the grounded non-super metahuman characters in Matt's world."

Safran revealed that DC Studios is currently negotiating with *Speak No Evil* director James Watkins to helm *Clayface*, with filming set to commence this summer. "This summer, cameras are going to roll on Clayface, an incredible body horror film that reveals a compelling origin of a classic Batman villain, and this is another title that we added to the slate on the strength of an exceptional screenplay by Mike Flanagan," Safran stated.

He also mentioned that casting will begin as soon as the director deal is finalized. "It's slated for a fall 2026 release. Clayface might not be as widely known as The Penguin or The Joker, but we really feel that his story is equally resonant, compelling, and in many ways, more terrifying than one of those," Safran added.

Throughout the presentation, Safran described *Clayface* as "experimental," not a "traditional superhero tentpole movie," but rather an "indie style chiller." Gunn echoed this sentiment, calling it "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* is "definitely R rated." Reflecting on the project, he said, "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."