Audiences rate DC’s body horror movie Clayface as highly as Nolan’s Batman films
DC Studios is steering its cinematic universe into body horror with Clayface — and two striking links to Christopher Nolan’s Batman Trilogy might just surprise you.
If you thought the DCU was all about capes, citywide brawls, and the odd punch-up among gods, here comes a left turn: Clayface has landed, and it is gleefully wallowing in body horror. That's right—DC is now serving up full-blooded transformation nightmares, directed by James Watkins (who, given his track record with bleak tales, seems pretty at home here). And if you look beneath the surface, there are a couple of curious links between this new fright-fest and Christopher Nolan's legendary Batman films.
All three—Clayface, The Dark Knight, and Batman Begins—currently hold a 94% Rotten Tomatoes audience score.
From Gotham Crime to Hollywood Horror
Before anyone starts expecting yet another masked vigilante, let's set the record straight: Clayface is a different monster entirely. The film zooms in on Matt Hagen (played by Tom Rhys Harries), a Hollywood actor whose brush with tragedy pushes him into dangerous scientific waters. Instead of the familiar quest to cleanse Gotham of its scum, we're watching a man's body and sense of self come apart at the seams—and, frankly, no utility belt's going to save him this time.
The comparison with Nolan's Batman Begins and The Dark Knight isn't just about tone. Sure, all three take a much darker approach with their source material (gone are the days of neon villains and cheesy puns), but the struggles on display are miles apart. Nolan's Bruce Wayne is all about smashing crime and pushing back against corruption, grappling with fear and the ethics of vigilante justice. Clayface, on the other hand, is more about the terror of losing your grip on who you are, wrapped up in classic horror imagery. The real villain here is transformation itself.
Where Clayface Fits in the DCU
If you're keeping tabs on where this slots into the current DCU line-up, it's carving out its own genre. James Gunn's Superman sticks close to the hero-defends-Earth blueprint, while Supergirl focuses on Kara Zor-El figuring out her place in the world. Clayface doesn't bother with city-wide showdowns or alien tyrants—it's far more concerned with what happens when your very skin stops cooperating.
- Clayface audience: 94%, critics: 75%
- Superman audience: not specified, critics: 83%
- Supergirl audience: not specified, critics: 52%
- The Dark Knight audience: 94%, critics: 94%
- Batman Begins audience: 94%, critics: 85%
It’s almost eyebrow-raising how Clayface and Nolan’s Batman films have ended up with the same 94% from Rotten Tomatoes audiences, even though they're on opposite ends of the superhero spectrum. Meanwhile, the critics have given Clayface a solid 75%, which puts it above Supergirl but just shy of Superman, and a bit below either Nolan film.
Ambition, Identity and a Lot of Goo
There’s another thread tying these films together: a fascination with high-stakes personal crises. Nolan’s Bruce Wayne faces crippling fear and moral dilemmas; Clayface’s Hagen is staring down a much more literal kind of transformation. Instead of fighting off criminals, he’s at war with his own reflection, desperate and out of control as his body morphs into something he can barely recognise.
If you’re after a straight superhero romp, you’ll want to look elsewhere. It’s unmistakable: Clayface is bringing horror and existential panic right to the heart of the DCU, and it's actually gone down quite well with audiences who usually fancy their comic book films a bit grim. You can catch it in cinemas now.