Clayface released a brand new poster that features Tom Rhys Harries' Matt Hagen walking away from the DCU's redesigned Gotham City. The DCU's next movie, after Superman and Supergirl, turns attention to the darker side of the DC mythos in formally introducing the Gotham City that will one day be home to an all-new Batman when he makes his debut in The Brave and the Bold.
DC Studios released a horrifying new poster for Clayface as it inches closer to hitting theaters on Friday, October 23, complete with the tagline, "Look fear in the face." The poster highlights Matt Hagen's body horror transformation as his skin droops into not only his own silhouette, but an outline of the DCU's redesigned Gotham City ahead of its live-action introduction in Clayface.
Clayface's trailers have already revealed a sneak peak at the next Gotham, and it is now prominently taking center stage, alongside Tom Rhys Harries' actor-turned-supervillain, in the last stretch of its marketing campaign.
Just recently, DC Studios has taken action to perfect its take on Gotham by vastly adjusting the cityscape between Clayface trailers. The studio will be eager to ensure its take on the infamous city is up to standard ahead of Clayface, as the design is expected to carry forward into the upcoming Batman reboot, The Brave and the Bold, and any potential sequels and Gotham-related spin-offs.
The revamped Gotham was first glimpsed almost two years ago in Creature Commandos as part of Doctor Phosphorus' origins. Funnily enough, Matt Hagen also appeared in the seven-episode animated show where he severely injured Frank Grillo's Rick Flag Sr., and Clayface will now recount his origin.
This marks the third poster for Clayface and the only one to feature Gotham City, almost as if it is a character in the body horror tale. The twisted first poster was released by DC Studios in April, five months after production wrapped in the U.K.
A second promotional poster with echoes of Dexter and Michael C. Hall's Dexter Morgan followed over the summer, and many felt it was the best yet for the Batman villain spin-off as it conveys the different sides of Matt Hagen.
What's Next in DC Studios' Marketing Campaign for Clayface
All three of Clayface's posters offer similar vibes, with bloody reds to evoke its body horror genre and a clear focus on Matt Hagen's skin melting transformation. It's also hard to ignore that DC Studios isn't excessively highlighting its own logo or even trying to convey any connections to Batman or the DCU, signalling a desire to appeal to the horror crowd, not those who usually show up for a superhero flick.
Even with just over a month to go until Clayface hits theaters, DCU fans only have one full-length trailer to enjoy and marketing has been very limited. The latest poster release signals that a new trailer may be imminent to coincide with tickets going on sale, kickstarting the month-long road to the DCU's third mainline movie.
This isn't awfully abnormal, as marketing campaigns typically only just in the final weeks before release in the horror genre, often carrying themselves to success through pure word of mouth, as audiences saw this year with Obsession. Only time will tell whether Clayface is good enough to reach the same standards, and DC Studios is in desparate need of a win after Supergirl lost over $100 million.
The studio have a unique task of trying to sell Clayface to both comic book and horror crowds, which are usually very different. That may be why DC Comics honored Clayface's incoming release with special covers for Clayface: Celebrity Dirt, Batman, Detective Comics, and Batman & Robin: Year One.
