Warner Bros. and DC Studios have released the first full trailer for Clayface, giving the rebooted DC Universe a villain origin story that looks more interested in melting faces than cape bookkeeping.
The film is part of DC Studios’ “Gods and Monsters” arc and is scheduled to reach theaters on October 23, 2026. The trailer arrives as San Diego Comic-Con is about to begin, which is convenient timing for a studio that would like its next DC chapter to look planned rather than patched together in public.
Clayface began as a project from Mike Flanagan, the filmmaker behind The Haunting of Hill House, Midnight Mass, The Fall of the House of Usher, and Doctor Sleep. Flanagan has said he took inspiration from “Feat of Clay,” the 1992 episode of Batman: The Animated Series, and wanted to make a tragic thriller with body-horror machinery under the hood.
DC Studios co-heads James Gunn and Peter Safran brought the pitch into the studio’s new continuity. Flanagan later left because of scheduling conflicts, according to the production history reported around the film. James Watkins is now directing. Gunn has said the final script kept Flanagan’s story, with Hossein Amini providing rewrites.
Matt Hagen gets the monster treatment
The movie follows the Matt Hagen version of Clayface, a character already introduced in the DCU through the animated series Creature Commandos, where Alan Tudyk voiced him. Tom Rhys Harries plays Hagen in the film.
According to the official premise, Hagen rises from a Gotham street kid to a Hollywood star before a local crime boss leaves him disfigured. After his career and support system collapse, he turns to an experimental treatment that restores his appearance, then damages his hold on reality and pushes him toward revenge.
That is close to older Clayface lore. The original 1940s version of the character was also an actor before becoming a criminal, although DC has revised the character repeatedly over the decades. This film appears to be mining that actor-to-monster setup for uglier psychological and physical consequences.
Naomi Ackie plays Dr. Caitlin Baines, described as a fringe scientist and Hagen’s love interest. Max Minghella plays a Gotham City police detective who is also dating Baines. Eddie Marsan, David Dencik, Francesca Corney, Ruby Sear, and Wil Coban are also in the cast, though their roles have not been disclosed.
The trailer is not subtle about the goo
An April teaser showed Hagen bandaged in a hospital bed and ended with his softened face beginning to shift. The new trailer spends more time on the procedure that gets him there.
In the footage, Baines asks Hagen to remove the mask covering his damaged face. Hagen wants his old Hollywood life back after thugs scarred him, and Baines offers a risky treatment built around an injection of an unknown viscous substance. She warns him that “this isn’t cosmetic surgery” and says side effects could occur without an obvious way to treat them.
Hagen agrees anyway, telling her, “Even if it kills me, I’ll be better off than I am now.” The trailer then shows the bad bargain taking shape: his face appears restored at first, then starts to sag during a flight. In an airplane restroom, Hagen holds a dop kit knife while his eyes seem to be sealing over. The trailer suggests his shapeshifting body and his anger feed each other, which is about as healthy as it sounds.
This story draws on original reporting from Ars Technica.
