Fresh off the success of the HBO series “The Penguin,” DC Studios has officially greenlit a feature film centered around Clayface, the shapeshifting Batman villain, from a script written by “Doctor Sleep” filmmaker Mike Flanagan, according to a source with direct knowledge of the production. Plot details are scarce, but filming is expected to begin early next year.

Matt Reeves and Lynn Harris will produce through their company 6th & Idaho Productions.

Flanagan, who first pitched DC Studios on a Clayface project in 2023, tweeted in 2021 that he was “really keen to do a standalone Clayface movie as a horror/thriller/tragedy.” But he is already committed to write and direct a new take on “The Exorcist” for Universal [...] So DC has been on the hunt for a director to take the reins, and an announcement is imminent.

Tom Rhys Harries Lands Role Of ‘Clayface’ In DC Studios James Watkins Movie

By Anthony D'Alessandro, Justin Kroll
June 17, 2025 8:00am

When it came to casting the lead in DC Studios’ next big movie, Clayface, the studio went with a fresh face, that being Welsh actor Tom Rhys Harries.

The actor from the Uma Thurman Apple TV series Suspicion and such movies as Uberto Pasolini’s The Return (starring Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche), the Gerard Butler action title Kandahar and Guy Ritchie’s The Gentleman landed the role from a competitive list of British thespians, i.e. 28 Years Later‘s Jack O’Connell, Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes‘ Tom Blyth, The White Lotus’ Leo Woodall and 1917‘s George MacKay.

Naomi Ackie in Early Talks to Join Tom Rhys Harries to Star in ‘Clayface’ (Exclusive)
By Borys Kit, Mia Galuppo
July 22, 2025 12:09pm

Naomi Ackie, the multi-faceted actress from Mickey 17 and Blink Twice, is joining the DCU in Clayface.

Ackie is in early talks to join the up-and-coming Welsh actor Tom Rhys Harries, who is playing the titular supervillain in the movie from Speak No Evil director James Watkins. Reading sessions took place in England last week with Ackie emerging as the choice. Formal negotiations are due to begin this week, according to several sources.

Mike Flanagan wrote the script for Clayface, a body horror thriller centered on a Batman villain known for his ability to alter his appearance.

The project is described as having shades and structure of The Fly, David Cronenberg’s 1986 that starred Jeff Goldblum and Geena Davis and centered on the tragic relationship between a scientist who becomes fused with the DNA of a fly and the journalist writing about his discovery.

Clayface, which sources have said will have a budget in the mid-$40 million range, centers on an ascending actor whose face is disfigured by a gangster. As a last resort, the actor turns to a fringe Elizabeth Holmes-style scientist for help. At first, the experiment is a successful but … well, it wouldn’t be a horror movie if the story ended right there, would it?

The film is already dated for Sept. 11, 2026, one of the surprise early entries of the James Gunn and Peter Safran DC-era, coming in ahead of better-known characters like Wonder Woman. The Batman director Matt Reeves will produce, along with Lynn Harris and Gunn and Safran.

Max Minghella, the Emmy-nominated Handmaid’s Tale actor, is in talks to join DC Studios‘ Clayface, which will hit theaters September 11, 2026.

A deal hasn’t closed yet, but when it’s finaled, Minghella would join Tom Rhys Harries, who has the title role in the James Watkins-directed genre movie, andMickey 17‘s Naomi Ackie.