DC Studios has unleashed the official trailer for Clayface right before SDCC 2026, its standalone Batman villain feature starring Tom Rhys Harries as the shape-shifting villain.
The reveal arrives just before this week’s Comic-Con, where the James Watkins-directed film is expected to showcase additional footage. Warner Bros will release the movie in theaters on October 23.
Positioned squarely within Matt Reeves’ Batman universe, Clayface falls between the two Caped Crusader films starring Robert Pattinson — 2022’s The Batman and the upcoming The Batman Part II, scheduled for 2028. The project follows the successful debut of the HBO Max series The Penguin, which operates in the same cinematic world.
DC has been building anticipation for Clayface since CinemaCon, where attendees got their first glimpse of Harries’ villainous transformation. In this fresh take on DC mythology, Clayface, whose real name is Matt Hagen, is a struggling actor left disfigured after a traumatic incident. While hospitalized, he is attacked and injected with unknown chemicals that unlock his extraordinary ability to shapeshift at will. The horror elements are present here, and the grotesque images really alludes to the true image of Gotham. An unsafe, morbid city that destroys those who are vulnerable already. It is void of any hope or justice, that villains must be created for their own sense of “fairness”.
According to DC’s official synopsis, the film:
“unravels one man’s horrifying descent from rising Hollywood star to revenge-filled monster in a story that explores the loss of one’s identity and humanity, corrosive love, and the dark underbelly of scientific ambition.”
The cast features Naomi Ackie alongside Harries, with David Dencik, Max Minghella, and Eddie Marsan rounding out the ensemble. The screenplay comes from the combined talents of Mike Flanagan and Hossein Amini. Producing duties are handled by Reeves, Lynn Harris, and DC Studios’ co-heads James Gunn and Peter Safran, with Michael E. Uslan, Chantal Nong Vo, Lars P. Winther, Rafi Crohn, and Paul Richie serving as executive producers.