Release date: October 23, 2026 (USA)
Director: James Watkins
Screenplay: Mike Flanagan, Hossein Amini
Producers: Matt Reeves, James Gunn, Peter Safran, Lynn Harris
MPAA rating: R
Distributed by: Warner Bros. Pictures
Clayface is an upcoming American body horror film based on the eponymous character from DC Comics. Directed by James Watkins from a screenplay by Mike Flanagan and Hossein Amini, it will be the third film in the DC Universe (DCU). Tom Rhys Harries stars as Matt Hagen / Clayface, alongside Naomi Ackie, David Dencik, Max Minghella, and Eddie Marsan. In the film, Hagen is an actor whose face is disfigured, and he turns to a scientist (Ackie) who transforms his body into clay, but begins to lose his sanity as he is unable to recognise himself. It is produced by Matt Reeves and Lynn Harris alongside James Gunn and Peter Safran of DC Studios.
After expressing interest in a Clayface film both publicly and to DC Films for their DC Extended Universe (DCEU) franchise, Flanagan pitched the project to the newly formed DC Studios in March 2023. The film and Flanagan’s involvement were confirmed in December 2024 as part of the DCU, the successor to the DCEU. Flanagan was unable to direct the film due to scheduling issues. Watkins was hired in February 2025, Amini was rewriting the script by May, and Rhys Harries was cast in June. Additional casting took place in the following months. Filming lasted from the end of August until the start of November 2025, taking place on location throughout Liverpool and on soundstages at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden in England.
