DC Studios will debut its historic first villain movie in 2026, and the first logo has been revealed. The DCU's Chapter 1: Gods and Monsters is officially underway on the big and small screen from DC Studios co-CEOs James Gunn and Peter Safran. Up until now, fans have only received projects written by Gunn across Creature Commandos, Superman, and Peacemaker Season 2. But that is all about to change in 2026, with Lanterns, Supergirl, Clayface, and possibly a Blue Beetle animated sequel series all debuting from other creative teams.
Gunn has been open that the DCU won't have any in-house style and will allow each project to have its own flair. This will allow each character to be better represented than the likes of the MCU, as something like Peacemaker can be an action-comedy while Clayface lands as a full-on body horror. To do this, DC Studios seems intent on having the right talent for the job, with Clayface hailing from writer Mike Flanagan and director James Watkins, both of whom have horror backgrounds, and not pasts in the superhero game.
DC Studios has officially started filming Clayface under James Watkins in Liverpool, U.K., and set photos have already started making the rounds, offering the first look at Tom Rhys Harries as Matt Hagen, aka Clayface. These production leaks included a peek at Clayface's official clapperboard and the movie's logo.
While DC Studios' first logo for Clayface has been revealed, that doesn't mean it will be the last, as changes can happen across development. That said, this early design encapsulates the Clayface character well, with a comic-booky font dissolving into a puddle of clay sludge, just as Hagen's life will in the 2026 movie.
Clayface will be a historic release on September 11, 2026, as it marks the first villain movie officially produced by DC Studios. While the blue brand's last Batman villain spin-off movie, Joker: Folie à Deux, hit theaters in October 2024 during Gunn and Safran's reign at the reshuffled studio, it was produced by director Todd Phillips under the old regime and through Warner Bros. Pictures, not DC Studios.
Over the coming months, actors Tom Rhys Harries, Eddie Marsan, Max Minghella, Naomi Ackie, and more will all get in front of cameras in the U.K. for Clayface.
DC Studios Is Leaning Into Villain Movies, And That's Great
Some may be concerned that Clayface is only starting filming one year before release, compared to other DCU flicks that have allowed closer to a year-and-a-half for further post-production time. But due to the body horror's limited $40 million budget, it will likely lean into practical effects and, as such, require less VFX work.
DC found great success with Joker as one of its first major villain movies, bringing in over $1 billion at the box office. Even though the 2024 sequel was a financial disaster for Warner Bros., DC Studios doesn't seem at all soured on villain movies.
While Clayface is the only one on the immediate horizon, a Bane/Deathstroke team-up movie is in the works for the DCU's Chapter 1. It's too soon to tell whether that unique DC villain team-up will move forward, as updates have been scarce since Moon Knight writer Matthew Orton was revealed to be working on the script.
After both Marvel and DC have faced box office struggles in recent years, there is no denying that superhero fatigue has become very real. So far, very few comic book villains have received solo outings, but they may be the path to reviving the genre, opening up new storytelling doors for arguably more complex characters.
Find out the five other DC villains who we think deserve the Clayface treatment.
