Word has come down from Variety that there’s a feature film coming centered around the Batman villain Clayface, and it’s being written by none other than Mike Flanagan (Doctor Sleep, Hush, Midnight Mass, Oculus). Matt Reeves (Warner Brothers’ current Caped Crusader custodian) and Lynn Harris will produce.
It’s an exciting development, but we’ve got some questions. First off, there have been many versions of Clayface over the years; which way will this one swing? Reeves at one point teased the idea as a “tragedy/horror” story, and that fits a couple Clayfaces. Viewers of HBO’s The Penguin might have noticed that Oz’s girlfriend was named Eve Karlo – that’s the same surname as at least one of DC’s Clayfaces. Basil Karlo was a washed-up horror actor who resorted to unsavory science to make him perfect for any part. Or something. The recent, Reeves-produced Caped Crusader animated series on Prime went this route; might Flanagan’s spin take a similar path? And will he be connected to Oz Cobb's situationship?
Our next question: Give or take a Venom, a Joker and a Penguin, these villain-centric stories that dance around having the superhero in them rarely work; will Batman be a presence in this, beyond the cursory reference/Bat-Signal in the background? Clayface could find himself next to Morbius and Kraven with a quickness, but hopefully Flanagan will lift the whole thing up.
Lastly, this isn’t really our department, but we’re curious to know if this part of the Robert Pattinson Bat-verse, or James Gunn’s new DCU, or something else? Time will tell; as long as it’s good, we’re down with Flanagan horror-ing up the superhero movies a bit.
