One of the DCU's founding fathers finally confirmed Batman's status during Clayface, amid his omission from the R-rated body-horror epic. Fans of James Gunn's new DCU are eagerly awaiting the arrival of the Dark Knight, who will be rebooted with a fresh actor in The Brave and the Bold, whenever that happens. In the meantime, the DCU is establishing its Gotham for the first time in live-action with Clayface, introducing Batman's shape-shifting villain, Matt Hagen.
DC Studios co-CEO Peter Safran sat down with Colldier amid Clayface's release, and the conversation naturally turned to Batman. The DCU co-lead offered the first status update on the Caped Crusader during Clayface, confirming that "Yes," Batman is established and operating somewhere in Gotham during the movie.
Safran (who recently shored up his DC future after the Paramount merger) added that they "haven't really talked about what he's doing" during Clayface and why he seemingly won't interfere in Matt Hagen's villainous beginnings:
"We haven’t really talked about what he’s doing during the actual events of 'Clayface'. But Batman is there. This is the introduction to the live-action Gotham. We showed a silhouette of Batman in 'Creature Commandos,' so you know he’s around, but this is the first step into the world of Gotham for us."
James Gunn previously confirmed that Clayface is "the first DCU film out of chronological order," placing it before Superman (which is set in 2025). That said, Gunn is known to be persnickety with his words, so it remains unclear whether Clayface also lands before the 2016-set first half of Lanterns, given that it is an HBO TV show, not a DCU movie.
Director James Watkins confirmed to TechRadar that Clayface is "deliberately unspecific" about its timeline placement, leaving its exact setting a mystery. That will be beneficial for The Brave and the Bold team, as it avoids making any solid commitments about how long the DCU's Batman has been active.
Safran's latest comments finally confirm that the DCU's Batman is active at the time of Clayface, after DC Studios had previously danced around the matter. Director James Watkins hinted that audiences will "feel the shadow of Batman inherently" in Clayface, leaving his status rather vague.
Lead actor Tom Rhys Harries also teased how they "have footage" that somehow relates to whether Matt Hagen is aware of Batman at the time of Clayface. The Welsh actor's words strongly suggest that the Dark Knight-related dialogue was cut from Clayface, seemingly leaving the DCU flick without any nod to Batman.
Did DC Studios Make a Mistake Omitting Batman From Clayface?
By all accounts, Clayface appears to be a slam-dunk for James Gunn's DCU, having received positive reactions from critics and fans who caught the body horror movie early at various fan screenings. But with no Batman in play at all, it may be a struggle to sell Clayface to general audiences and casual DC moviegoers.
It's understandable why Batman doesn't appear in Clayface; DC Studios will want to save casting the Caped Crusader for The Brave and the Bold, and Robert Pattinson will reprise the role for The Batman: Part 2 before then. Not to mention, directly featuring Batman in any capacity within Clayface would undoubtedly distract from Matt Hagen's tragic story, which is, of course, the movie's focus.
Still, as Peter Safran said, Clayface is "the introduction to the live-action Gotham," and Batman is central to that mythos, making it tough to justify why he seemingly won't at least be referenced. It seems likely that DC Studios is simply avoiding revealing too much or committing to details about the DCU's Batman to maintain the freedom to craft The Brave and the Bold.
Still, DC Studios is running eerily close to Sony's Spider-Man Universe's streak of dancing around the hero who is integral to the leading villain's story. That concept worked for Joker, as that was an Elseworlds story, and the Clown Prince of Crime is a household name in his own right, but only time will tell whether quality and the DCU brand are enough to push Clayface to box office glory.
