Draft:Untitled Clayface film

An untitled Clayface film is a potential American superhero film based on the DC Comics character Clayface. Produced by DC Studios, 6th & Idaho, Intrepid Pictures, and the Safran Company, and to be distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, it is intended to be a film in either the DC Universe (DCU) or a standalone film under the "DC Elseworlds" label. The film will be written and directed by Mike Flanagan.

Flanagan had discussed a Clayface film with DC Studios co-CEOs James Gunn and Peter Safran in March 2023, after previously expressing interest in making the film.

Development
Filmmaker Mike Flanagan expressed interest in January 2021 in making a standalone film focused on the DC Comics character Clayface as a "horror/thriller/tragedy". Flanagan had previously discussed making a "horror-leaning" iteration of the character, among other properties, for their franchise the DC Extended Universe (DCEU) in a general meeting with DC Films producer Jon Berg. Flanagan felt the meeting "kind of went nowhere", saying that DC did not "bite on" his idea but that he was ready to commit to the project "anytime". By October 2022, filmmaker Matt Reeves was meeting with directors and writers for several films and television series to spin-off from his standalone DC film The Batman (2022) that were in early development and centered on members of Batman's rogues gallery, such as Clayface. In March 2023, Flanagan and his Intrepid Pictures partner Trevor Macy met with James Gunn and Peter Safran, the co-CEOs of DC Studios, regarding a Clayface film, in which he would not be the villain that he typically is portrayed as in the comics. If the film were to move forward it was unclear at the time if it would be part of the DC Universe (DCU), the successor franchise to the DCEU, or be released under the "DC Elseworlds" label; Reeves's The Batman – Part II (2026) was also expected to feature the character. Flanagan said the report of him pitching a Clayface film by then was "entirely speculative", further stating in late May that such a film was not in development and that he was participating in the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike that began earlier that month. In August, Production Weekly included a Clayface film in their report of upcoming projects in development. Reeves, Gunn, and Safran were listed as producers, along with Flanagan as writer and director. Reeves's company 6th & Idaho, Intrepid Pictures, the Safran Company, and DC Studios were listed as the production companies.