DC Studios and its DC Universe brand are having a good run into the back half of the year, and it was a much-needed upswing. After successfully launching the franchise on the back of James Gunn’s Superman (2025), the DCU saw its next big film release, Supergirl (2026), totally flop in theaters. But just as chatter was building about whether Gunn had a firm hand on the wheel, HBO’s Lanterns has premiered and broken out to become the pop-culture phenomenon of the Fall TV season.
The DCU has more to offer before the year is done: Right when Lanterns ends its run, the next DCU movie will be set to open in theaters: Clayface, a dark origin story for one of Batman’s oldest (and strangest) villains. Fans have seen the trailers for Clayface and have been waiting intently for confirmation about one aspect of the movie that could be a make-or-break issue for some viewers. And now, that confirmation is here.
It’s now officially on the books that Clayface is rated R for “strong bloody violence, gore, language, some nudity, and brief drug use.” We’ve known since last year (via James Gunn himself) that the film was being produced and shot as an R-rated feature. However, by the time a film goes from shooting to being in post-production, the studio’s plans can change, depending on how executives rate the finished product that’s onscreen. We’ve seen cases where more mature, R-rated films get cut down to PG-13 ratings so that they can appeal to a much wider audience demographic (teens) and earn more at the box office.
Given the major losses associated with Supergirl, some fans worried DC Studios and Warner Bros. might change strategies with Clayface. Instead, this official rating (specifically the “bloody violence, gore,” and “some nudity”) makes it clear we’re getting the most adult-themed DC movie ever – and that’s saying something.
The most comparable DC films would be Joker, which was “Rated R for strong bloody violence, disturbing behavior, language, and brief sexual images,” and The Suicide Squad, which got its R-rating for “strong violence and gore, language throughout, some sexual references, drug use, and brief graphic nudity.” Each of those films got a mention of either “bloody violence” or “gore”; Clayface apparently requires mention of both to prepare viewers for the experience.
The story of Clayface follows Matt Hagen (Tom Rhys), a Gotham City actor whose breakout fame is (literally) cut short when a group of local gangsters horribly mutilate his face. Desperate, Matt turns to Dr. Caitlin Corr (Naomi Ackie), a scientist working on fringe experiments like a form of living clay that could potentially restore Matt’s mangled face. At first, the experiment looks successful as Matt gets his face back – but the miracle doesn’t last long before it becomes a nightmare. Matt finds that his entire body is mutating in radical ways he can’t control, and his mind begins breaking down just as fast as his body, turning him into a monster in more ways than one.
The hardcore horror tone of Clayface may be a necessary selling point; if the film doesn’t have an appearance from Batman, marketing it as a DCU comic book movie may not be the move.
James Watkins (Speak No Evil) is directing from a script by Mike Flanagan (The Haunting of Hill House, Doctor Sleep) and Hossein Amini (47 Ronin, The Snowman). It will be in theaters on October 23rd.
