Who Is DC’s Clayface? Everything You Need To Know About THE BATMAN PART II’s Rumored Lead Villain

The news broke yesterday that Mike Flanagan (The Fall of the House of Usher) is writing a Clayface movie for DC Studios. This will likely be set in the DCU, serving as the tragic origin story of the villain we’ll eventually see in action in Creature Commandos. 

However, we’ve also learned that Matt Reeves’ The Batman Part II features Clayface in a lead role, suggesting he’ll be the sequel’s big bad. This will be a welcome change from familiar faces like The Joker and Scarecrow and he’s a villain who, as you’ll soon see, would be a great match for the World’s Greatest Detective.

Like most DC Comics characters, there have been multiple versions of Clayface. Over the decades, he’s been portrayed in vastly different ways and we’re now bringing you up to speed with our breakdown of who and what this sinister Batman is (along with what that means for these upcoming movies). 

To find out what could be on the way in Clayface and The Batman Part II, simply click the “Next”/”View List” buttons below. 
 

5. He’s Not Just A Giant Mud Monster

While it’s easy enough to imagine the “comic-accurate” Clayface fitting into James Gunn’s DCU, we’d imagine many of you are confused about how a villain like this could suit the grounded world established by Reeves in The Batman. 

Well, the first iteration of Clayface debuted in the 1940s, mere months after The Joker. At the time, Basil Karlo was little more than a deranged B-List actor and killer who dressed up as the sinister “Clayface” character he’d played in the past. 

Furious he’d been recast in the monstrous role, Karlo went on a killing spree that saw him target the cast of the film made without him. Batman and Robin eventually hunt him down, of course. 

Matt Hagen was the first Clayface with shape-shifting abilities and bought the villain back into the spotlight in Batman: The Animated Series. So, which version of this villain will we see in these upcoming movies?
 

4. There Are Multiple Versions Of Clayface

The Golden Age’s Karlo eventually gained shape-shifting abilities but, as we mentioned above, his origin story is rooted in reality. As for Hagen, he was an adventurer who turned into a monster after encountering a radioactive pool of protoplasm.

In Batman: The Animated Series, Hagen was portrayed as an actor who used an anti-ageing cream to look younger. After getting on the wrong side of its creator, Roland Daggett, Hagen is doused in a vat of the stuff and becomes the “classic” Clayface you all know from the comics.

The third Clayface was Preston Payne; he was largely forgettable but horribly scarred (a plot point which could come into play in either movie). There’s also a female Clayface, Sondra Fuller, and forgettable efforts like Cassius Payne, Peter Malley, Todd Russell, and Johnny Williams.

With multiple versions to pick from, we could see any one of them on screen and perhaps even an amalgamation. 
 

3. His Powers And Abilities

Unsurprisingly, each version of Clayface has different powers in the comics. As noted, Karlo originally had no special abilities but instead wore a horrible clay mask (he’d later use cell samples from the third and fourth iterations to shapeshift his very DNA). 

Hagen can only change his appearance temporarily and must return to a pool of protoplasm to recharge. Payne could melt people with a single touch, Fuller had the same abilities as Hagen – albeit without the need to charge herself up – and Malley could dissolve others with a look. 

The villain’s main power is, of course, the fact he can look and sound like anyone. In Flanagan’s DCU-set movie, we’d imagine him being the mud monster you see above. As for The Batman Part II, common sense says he’ll perhaps change his appearance with creepy masks. 

Whatever the case may be, there are a multitude of ways for Clayface to be portrayed on screen regardless of the universe he calls home. 
 

2. He’s Been Batman’s Ally And Enemy

During “The New 52” era of storytelling, Karlo unleashed a master plan which saw him impersonate Bruce Wayne in his role as Wayne Industries CEO. He even figures out that Bruce and Batman are one and the same, a situation the Caped Crusader manages to talk his way out of. 

This was far from the first time things got personal between the vigilante and Clayface; during the Hush storyline, the villain uses the shape-shifter to impersonate Jason Todd, simply to mess with the Dark Knight’s mind. 

Then, there’s the time Clayface became a bona fide hero. Reformed, he joined a team of heroes including Batman, Batwoman, Orphan, Robin, and Spoiler. 

While we don’t necessarily expect to see that in either the DCU or Bat-Verse, Flanagan has expressed a desire to explore Clayface’s tragic backstory and will likely be portrayed in a sympathetic light. As for Reeves’ version…well, we’re guessing he’ll be a serial killer.
 

1. What Do We Know About Live-Action Clayface Plans?

At this stage, not much. Flanagan has spent the past few years sharing his hope to bring Clayface to the big screen, saying: “Well I’ve wanted to do a Superman movie since I was a kid, but I would also be really keen to do a standalone Clayface movie as a horror/thriller/tragedy.”

As we’ve alluded to several times in this feature, we expect the filmmaker to track this character’s descent from actor to killer to monster. It’s also possible the version we’ve seen in Creature Commandos is the second or third Clayface rather than the one Flanagan plans to focus on.

What of the Bat-verse? Well, seeing as we don’t expect that “Clayface” to be a mud monster, chances are he’ll be grounded in reality and more akin to the 1940s version. So, even if we get two Basil Karlos, for example, they’ll be different enough for it not to matter. 

While Clayface is expected to have a prominent role in The Batman Part II, that doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll be the only villain or even the main big bad. He may even be doing the bidding of someone like Hush…