Earlier tonight we got our first look at DC Studios’ upcoming Clayface with a brilliant teaser trailer. Now we’re taking a closer look at the film, breaking down some of the key moments to look for clues as to what’s going on with poor Matt Hagen (Tom Rhys Harries). The film, directed by James Watkins, will release in UK cinemas on October 23, 2026.
Before we dive into the trailer why not watch it again just one more time…
Matt Hagen’s Journey
The trailer opens on the stark image of Matt Hagen in a hospital bed, his face covered in bloodied bandages and held together by a wrap and with one eye fixed directly on us. As his stare pierces through the lens of the camera we begin to push in whilst music begins to play. But who is Matt Hagen? Without any dialogue the teaser gives us snippets of Hagen’s life, showing us some of what he had before losing it all as Clayface.
As an ominous droning sound begins to swell a brief image of Tom Rhys Harries face against a blue backdrop, happier, smouldering, smashes across the screen. It appears for mere frames but instantly we know. Matt Hagen was somebody. Back to the tracking shot of Hagen in the hospital bed, music continuing to build. The next image that cuts through is Hagen suited on a red carpet, fans screaming for him and wearing a beaming smile on his Hollywood face. At this point it’s clear that Mike Flanagan’s script, also worked on my Hossein Amini, takes cues from Batman: The Animated Series by mixing the acting origins of Basil Karlo with the name Matt Hagen.
The next moment to cut through the tracking shot is Matt being held down by several men with one cutting into his face as he screams. This doesn’t seem to be the hospital bed and Matt is clearly not on board with what’s being done to him. We’re immediately informed that perhaps his transformation isn’t necessarily his choice. But again the trailer gives us very little context as to what’s going on. The next cluster of shots focusses more on his transformation. First we see him wearing a surgical mask which appears to be holding his face together, that then gives way to shots of a mysterious chemical being injected into his face. In the next shot his more sullen face is replaced by a split-second shot of of his face melting away, symbolically losing his identity.
The rest of the trailer focusses on the spiral Hagen appears to go through as he loses all control of the world around him. Shots mix between him in hiding, on side streets of Gotham with a hood up or running from unseen foes in back alleyways. There are also more shots of his face in various different configurations with either his mouth sealing up or missing a feature like an eye. It all culminates in the final shot of the trailer as he lies in a bathtub and wipes away his own face leaving nothing but melted skin.
A Glimmer of Hope
As the trailer is so heavily focussed on Matt Hagen there’s not much room for other characters to make an impression. One who does is Naomi Ackie whose role in the film remains a secret for now. Rumours around her casting ranged from Julie Madison to “Dr. Caitlin Bates, a biotech CEO and love interest”. Well the latter of those details is definitely true based on one brief moment of seeing Ackie on screen with Tom Rhys Harries.
As the teaser culminates in a world of chaos around Hagen one shot stands out as a calm amongst the story. Hagen and Ackie’s character sit on the sofa of a neat looking apartment, hand-in-hand with each other. For the brief moment the shot is on screen their fingers entwine showing this is most definitely a tender moment. His dark clothes suggest this may be after his transformation but we will just have to wait until October to know for sure. But one this is clear, Ackie’s character is his anchor and something good in his life. But as this is a horror might she also be the final girl?
Gotham Landmarks
The romantic moment between Hagen and his love interest isn’t actually her first appearance in the trailer. A little earlier on we see Ackie, mostly in silhouette walking through a Gotham underpass. Sounds unremarkable right? Well as red and green lights illuminate the background we see a huge advert for Gotham’s famous Amusement Mile. A giant clown points funfair goers towards “excitement and thrills” at the waterfront property, most famous for being a hideout for Joker across comics, cartoons and of course the Arkham games.
It’s clear that Gotham will be a major setting in Clayface, something which early rumours suggested would not be the case. However the teaser certainly makes it appear that Hagen will spend a lot of time in the film running around the city. Between shots of back alleys and hospital beds we do get a couple of wider shots including the above image of a boat pull into a harbour. On first glance it could be an average establishing shot. We can see one of Gotham’s trademark bridges off to the right of the frame but it’s a small piece of text over to the left we’re interested in.
Look closely and you’ll see that the gangway down into the harbour you’ll see it says “The Narrows” along the side. Is this boar pulling up at the neighbourhood made famous by Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins. The Narrows area of Gotham is well known to comic book fans as one of the city’s shadier neighbourhoods, perhaps where one might find a backstreet clinic to held after having been injected with a mysterious compound.
One cast member who is missing from the teaser is Max Minghella who from set photos we know is playing a GCPD cop. We do see a GCPD car briefly in the trailer as a hooded figure attempts to pass by unnoticed. On first inspection the hoodie appears to be the same one Matt Hagen is wearing when seen in an alleyway surrounded by neon signs. But on closer look the actor passing by the car is Eddie Marsan. Could Marsan’s mysterious character be one of the identities Matt Hagen transforms into in order to hide from the authorities?
Who Created Clayface?
Basil Karlo, the original Clayface, made his first appearance all the way back in 1940 in the pages of Detective Comics #40. Karlo was an actor who took on the guise of Clayface after becoming disgruntled by a lack of success in the industry. Karlo never actually had the powers of Clayface. Those were instead introduced with Matt Hagen in his 1961 debut in Detective Comics #298. Hagen was given the ability to shape shift after stumbling upon a mysterious pool of protoplasm.
It was in 1992 Batman: The Animated Series episode that the origins of Matt Hagen and Basil Karlo were merged into one. The episode teleplay was written by legendary comic book writer Marv Wolfman and finds Hagen a struggling actor just like Karlo. Only in this origin Hagen is left scarred after an accident which hurts his career. He turns to crime after becoming addicted to a miracle product called “Renuyu” created by Dagget Industries. After breaking into Dagget’s lab Hagen is doused with a lethal dose of “Renuyu” which transformers him into Clayface.
In the second teaser image posted to the film’s Instagram account we see the cover of the Gotham Medical Journal which features a headline on “Regenerative Medicine”. Could a similar accident be what propels Hagen to being treated with the chemicals which create Clayface?
The trailer gives little away, alluding only towards medical devices and a colourful chemical seen being injected into Matt Hagen’s face. There is an intriguing shot of what appears to be part of Clayface, separated from the rest of his body, vibrating on top of what appears to be a speaker. Could this be a glimpse into the company behind the experiment trying to analyse and understand what happened to Hagen?
The Mace
Many fans associate Clayface with one of his arms transformed into a spiked mace. The image has been seen in comics, animation and video games becoming a trademark of the character’s ability to become a formidable foe to the Dark Knight. Not one to let us down, James Watkins has found a way to include the weapon in the film in what is already shaping up to be an iconic shot.
In the trailer we see someone who is presumably Hagen in silhouette, once again in a Gotham back street, with his arm raised high. The shadow of his hand is shaped into the familiar mace-like weapon with spikes clearly visible. The shot comes to an end before we see the weapon for real or see the shadowy figure take a swipe at whoever it is they are after.
You can also watch Neil’s full video breakdown in the player below:
Directed by James Watkins and written by Hossein Amini and Mike Flanagan, Clayface stars Tom Rhys Harries as Matt Hagen. Also starring in the film are Naomi Ackie, Max Minghella, Ruby Sear and Eddie Marsan.
Producing Clayface are James Gunn and Peter Safran for DC Studios as well as The Batman filmmaker Matt Reeves and Lynn Harris. Chantal Nong is executive producer.
