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Another Incredibly Powerful Justice League Hero’s Arrival Teased By The DCU’s R-Rated Batman Spinoff
The DC Universe is taking a bold turn by delving into R-rated body horror with its upcoming film, Clayface. The project, penned by modern horror maestro Mike Flanagan, eschews the traditional superhero formula to tell a darker, more grounded story inspired by the two-part Batman: The Animated Series episode “Feats of Clay,”. This terrifying tale will unfold in the DCU’s official version of Gotham City, a landscape that will be distinct from the one seen in Matt Reeves’ The Batman saga. At the center of this urban nightmare is actor Matt Hagen (Tom Rhys Harries), who is tragically transformed into the titular malleable monster after a tragic accident. While specific plot details remain tightly under wraps, ongoing filming has already started to reveal surprising connections to the wider DC landscape, including a very specific tease that points directly to the arrival of one of the Justice League’s most powerful magic users.
Multiple set photos from the production of Clayface have revealed the presence of the Vesuvius, a popular Gotham nightclub. In the pages of DC Comics, that particular establishment is famously owned by and serves as the base of operations for Zatanna Zatara, a world-renowned stage magician who wields formidable magical abilities. Zatanna is a core member of the Justice League and is considered one of the most powerful sorcerers in the DC Universe.
Zatanna’s potential introduction in Clayface builds upon an Easter egg already planted in James Gunn’s Superman, which featured a mural in the Hall of Justice depicting her father, the Golden Age magician Giovanni Zatara. Therefore, the appearance of her signature location in Gotham strongly suggests that Zatanna already exists in the DCU and could be the first explicitly magical superhero to be introduced.
Clayface Also Teases a Different Version of The Joker
Beyond the magical implications of the Zatanna Easter egg, set photos from Clayface have also provided the DCU’s first canonical references to the Joker. One piece of graffiti simply reads “The Jokers,” implying the villain may have a gang or a following that shares his moniker. A different prop, a flyer calling for a march against the Gotham City Police Department, explicitly encourages citizens to “JOIN THE JOKER,” positioning the Clown Prince of Crime as an anarchic political figure rallying dissent among the populace. This underlines that the DCU’s Batman, who will officially debut in The Brave and the Bold after a Creature Commandos cameo, has been operating for some time and that many of his iconic villains are already established within this new continuity.
Clayface is being directed by James Watkins, known for the horror film Speak No Evil, from a script originally by Flanagan and co-written by Hossein Amini. The production team includes a powerhouse of DC veterans, including DC Studios co-CEOs Gunn and Peter Safran, as well as The Batman director Matt Reeves and his producing partner Lynn Harris. Joining Rhys Harries’ Matt Hagen in the cast are Naomi Ackie as a scientist, Max Minghella as a Gotham police detective, and Eddie Marsan in an unrevealed role. Clayface embodies DC Studios’ strategy of diversifying its slate, operating with a modest budget of approximately $45 million to tell a self-contained, genre-specific story that still enriches the broader universe.
Clayface is scheduled to be released in theaters on September 11, 2026.
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