‘Clayface’ Comes Alive In First Teaser
by Erik Amaya
One thing is certain in the trailer for DC Studio’s upcoming Clayface: it is not Superman. Since it jumped the studio’s queue of projects in development to become the third film in James Gunn‘s reign as co-CEO, it has always been positioned as a horror film. And this preview definitely delivers that vibe:
Tom Rhys Harries stars as a character who may or may not be called Matt Hagen. He may also be based on the original Clayface, Basil Karlo, as the film’s synopsis states the character is a “rising Hollywood star” who ends up descending into a “revenge-filled monster.” Karlo was, infamously, a B-movie actor who began to commit crimes using the identity of a character he played in one of those programmers. Hagen, the second Clayface, was the first to present with shape-shifting abilities while a subsequent version of the character — there are eight in total — inspired the one featured in Batman: The Animated Series (although he was named Basil Karlo) which became the default depiction of Clayface in other media.
Granted, all of that could be academic as screenplay writers Mike Flanagan and Hossein Amini, and director James Watkins, reshape the concepts into the DC Cinematic Universe’s first horror tale. Indeed, the TAS Clayface’s mud mace appears in shadow in one of the teaser’s shots. And with so many version of Clayface to work from, picking the most horrific elements may lead to something truly startling for the DCU and for moviegoers.
Also featuring Naomi Ackie, David Dencik, Max Minghella, and Eddie Marsan, Clayface arrives in theaters on October 23rd.
