A new report centered on The Batman - Part II revealed a new villain that Robert Pattinson's Batman will have to face in the DCU.
With over two and a half years until the sequel hits the big screen, Warner Bros. is hard at work pulling together the cast for The Batman 2 as Robert Pattinson preps for his second appearance in the cape and cowl.
Alfred star Andy Serkis was confirmed to reprise his role as Bruce Wayne's longtime butler, as fans look forward to seeing him recover from a brutal bomb blast at the hands of Paul Dano's Riddler.
Additionally, Dano will look to exact his revenge on Bruce Wayne as one of the villains in The Batman 2, rumored to be coming back alongside Colin Farrell's Penguin after Farrell's own HBO Max series hits the streaming service.
New Villain Coming in The Batman 2
Deadline reported that the DC villain Clayface will play a big role in Matt Reeves' The Batman - Part II, which is set to arrive in theaters in late 2025.
While no actor has been cast yet, he'll become the latest villain in the sequel to Matt Reeves' The Batman alongside the Riddler and the Penguin.
There are two notable versions of Clayface from the comics, the first of whom is Matthew Hagen, a treasure hunter that interacts with a radioactive pool of protoplasm and turns into a clay-like substance. This allows him to manipulate his physical features anytime he wants, although he needs to return to the protoplasm source in order to recharge and continue using his abilities.
The original version, known as Basil “Baz” Karlo, is a B-list actor who once portrayed a villain named Clayface and hears of a movie being remade that he once starred in. He proceeds to kill the other actors involved with the original movie, 'Dread Castle,' before going after the actor who took over the Clayface role after him.
This also comes as part of a report noting that filmmaker Mike Flanagan has pitched a story to Warner Bros featuring Clayface as the main character. Deadline further noted that Flanagan's interpretation of Clayface would not be portrayed as a supervillain as he is traditionally depicted.
After that report, Flanagan took to Twitter to note that the news was "entirely speculative" and that he would inform the public if it came to fruition:
"Re: CLAYFACE - the news today is entirely speculative. When or if something like that ever becomes real, I promise I'll tell you guys. :)"
How Will Warner Bros. Use Clayface in The Batman 2
Fans have seen a whole lot of Clayface in recent years thanks to Alan Tudyk's starring role in the animated Harley Quinn show streaming on HBO Max. But this time, Warner Bros will likely look to take on a much more serious and grounded version of the villain.
This will also be the most fantastical villain that Matt Reeves has taken on yet with the Penguin, Riddler, and eventually, Barry Keoghan's Joker being in play, leaving fans intrigued about how Clayface will actually be brought to life.
Reeves also indicated that The Batman 2 will see much of its story set up on HBO Max, meaning that fans may see hints of Clayface's inclusion long before his cinematic debut in the Elseworlds slate.
But with filming for the sequel still a few months out, plenty of work still needs to be done in order to bring this iconic Dark Knight antagonist into this dark and gritty universe.
The Batman 2 begins filming in November ahead of its October 3, 2025 release.
