The leading man of DC Studios' latest movie, Clayface, confirms that Batman-related scenes were shot and may have been deleted from the DCU flick. The superstar actor-turned-shapeshifting monster Matt Hagen is one of the most fearsome villains in the Dark Knight's rogues' gallery, and his tragic body horror origin will be recounted in Clayface on Friday, October 23. However, as James Gunn's DCU hasn't cast its Batman, who will debut in The Brave and the Bold, Clayface still has no Caped Crusader to go up against for now.
Clayface star Tom Rhys Harries sat down with ComicBook, who floated the question of whether Matt Hagen is aware of Batman at this point in the DCU. In response, the actor cryptically stated that they "have footage" relating to that question, but was careful not to say any more to avoid getting in trouble:
"We have footage, and I don't think it's... I don't know how much I can say. Yes, we had discussions about that at length."
Fans spotted the first clue to Clayface's DCU timeline placement on set last year, thanks to a poster for the Flying Graysons. The reference to Dick Grayson's pre-Robin career confirms that, if the Dark Knight is active in Gotham, he must only be in his first few years of crime-fighting if he has yet to adopt the Boy of Wonder.
Cryptic HD Quality claimed on X that Clayface has "nothing specific to Batman, but Wayne is acknowledged in it." It's unclear whether the scooper is referring to Bruce Wayne himself, the wider Wayne family, or Wayne Enterprises, but regardless, audiences shouldn't expect to see the Gotham socialite on screen.
The DCU's Matt Hagen actor may have confirmed that footage related to Batman was shot for Clayface, but also suggests it was deleted from the final cut. But that doesn't rule out some hint toward the Wayne family, perhaps being name-dropped at a high-class party or event that Hagen attends through his acting stardom, or even with a simple Wayne Enterprises sign spotted somewhere in Gotham.
Harries pointed out to ComicBook that the Batman mythos is flooded by "psychologically interesting characters" and stories that can play out in Gotham separately, whilst Batman also exists in that universe:"
"Gotham's so rich, and the Batman villains gallery is so rich, so full of psychologically interesting characters with depth. You can have these different characters and different stories play out whilst Batman also exists in that universe."
Will the DCU's Clayface Ever Fight Batman?
DC Studios still hasn't cast its Batman, and it's tough to imagine that they managed to do so in secret without it leaking for a cameo in Clayface or Man of Tomorrow. Instead, James Gunn's DCU likely won't cast its Dark Knight until The Brave and the Bold is ready to move forward, which won't be until after The Batman: Part 2.
While Clayface seemingly won't acknowledge the Caped Crusader directly, director James Watkins hinted that audiences "feel the shadow of Batman inherently" due to its Gotham setting. That would suggest that Batman is already out there somewhere, perhaps waiting to pounce on Matt Hagen after his villainous turn.
Many were hopeful that a shadowed, faceless Batman would appear in Clayface, teasing his inevitable clash with Matt Hagen after his monstrous turn. However, Creature Commandos confirms that Clayface was free in his final form to be recruited by Princess Illana Rostovic to discredit Circe's vision that she was plotting world domination, meaning that he can't be caught anytime soon.
Fortunately, Gunn confirmed to Cinemex at the Clayface premiere that "this isn't the last we’ll see of Clayface," hinting that he "can't wait for you to see what we do with him." As such, even though Clayface won't be fighting Batman this year, there is every chance that they will go head-to-head in a future DCU project, perhaps as a supporting villain in The Brave and the Bold.
