Will Mike Flanagan’s ‘Clayface’ Be Woke? It Might Be If It Adapts This One Aspect Of Batman Villain’s DC Animated History

Clayface-ME
Clayface (Ron Perlman) reveals what an overdose can do in Batman: The Animated Series Season 1 Episode 5 "Feat of Clay, Pt. 2" (1992), Warner Bros. Animation

The DCU is only getting started and it’s already proving to be spontaneous, if not mercurial. Nobody would’ve guessed that Creature Commandos would be the vanguard of the endeavor ahead of Superman unless you can predict James Gunn’s every move based on his interests and filmography.

Nina (Zoë Chao) is unaware that she's in the sights of a Son of Themyscira (Alan Tudyk) in Creature Commandos Season 1 Episode 2 "The Tourmaline Necklace" (2024), DC Studios
Nina (Zoë Chao) is unaware that she’s in the sights of a Son of Themyscira (Alan Tudyk) in Creature Commandos Season 1 Episode 2 “The Tourmaline Necklace” (2024), DC Studios

Even more so, surely no one thought Clayface, a character with only a small role in the series, would be the first to earn a spinoff in the form of a solo movie, which is due out in a little over a year from now.

Other than allusions to tragedy with chances of Cronenbergian body horror, based on the info out there, the contents of the script by supernatural thriller director Mike Flanagan are under lock and key, but it must be awesome. James Gunn wouldn’t fast-track garbage, right? (Sarcasm registered? Good.)

Clay face last laugh
Clayface (Ron Perlman) laughs in triumph or so he thinks in Batman: The Animated Series Season 2 Episode 3 “Mudslide” (1993), Warner Bros. Animation

It’s also not entirely certain which version of the villain Gunn and Flanagan will go with for the DCU, but all signs point to the iteration of Matt Hagen popularized by Batman: The Animated Series.

Combining the identity of Hagen with the actor aspect of Basil Karlo and the tragic existence of Preston Payne, the show engineered something wholly unique. BTAS Hagen was similar to what came before him in a few respects yet so fresh and compelling that he was embraced as the standard by which others were measured.

This occurred in almost no time, and today, there is practically no mention or notion of other forms the character has taken over the years, aside from the occasional resurgence of Karlo in other media. Even then, the powers and abilities often remain the same, as does the origin.

Frame it
Clayface (Brian Keane) escapes after his fight with Red Hood (Stephen Oyoung) in Gotham Knights (2022), Warner Bros. Games Montreal

Hagen is influential and DC Studios might seek to push that further and cement him deeper into the mainstream. To do that, Gunn and Flanagan might be tempted to add, or in this case confirm, layers of Hagen’s back story that haven’t been explored. And unfortunately, this could lead to the usual pandering that Hollywood is so attached to.

Unless you have studied up on your extended BTAS lore, you probably have no idea what I’m talking about. To cut to the chase, there are supposed hints going back to his first appearance indicating that Matt Hagen is a member of the alphabet community. That’s right, there were signs Hagen was gay way back in the 90s.

This belief stems from his association with the character Teddy in Feat of Clay, Part 1 and 2. Matt and Teddy are very close, but the exact nature of their relationship is never fully explained. Clearly, they are friends albeit with some friction, due to Matt’s dependency on Roland Daggett’s products, and ties to criminal dealings that ultimately turn him into a monster.

Comeback Kid
Teddy (Dick Gautier) tries to reason with Matt (Ron Perlman) in Batman: The Animated Series Season 1 Episode 5 “Feat of Clay, Pt. 2” (1992), Warner Bros. Animation

Also an actor, Teddy met Matt while making one of his action films, working as a stand-in and likely a stunt double. He became Matt’s confidant and the only ally aware of his struggles since his disfiguring, career-jeopardizing accident. But, according to a fan-made biography, the two were more than just close friends; they were lovers.

Though it sounds like a fan theory, BTAS episode director Kevin Altieri verified years later that Matt and Teddy’s dynamic was “intentionally homosexual.” Flanagan, who has thought nothing of grossly risqué and disquieting scenes in his films, might have tapped into this when putting his story together.

If so, and there’s a domestic entanglement to go with a sense of loss and dread we anticipate (a la The Fly and Wolf Man), then it may lean toward a same-sex union instead of a ‘heteronormative’ one. ‘Representation’ might come at the cost of narrative quality and coherence, in other words.

Holes in your theory
Clayface (Adam Gifford) takes a bullet in Batman: Hush (2019), Warner Bros. Animation

The implications there are fairly obvious, as are the types of scenes viewers may witness. However, the severity of the hypothetical content would depend on how it is handled. To go full Brokeback Mountain in a mainstream comic book movie, even in the 2020s, feels too risky, but not unlikely.

James Gunn didn’t shy away from gore and off-color humor in Peacemaker or Creature Commandos, and those are supposed to coexist with the lighter tone of Superman. Will he take the opportunity to toe that line between good taste and wokeness (again)? Time will tell, but keep in mind, despite going broke, DEI is not fully ‘D-I-E, dead’ yet over on the West Coast.

Sit on me James
James Gunn considers sitting on Clayface (Alan Tudyk) in Harley Quinn Season 3 Episode 1 “Harlivy” (2022), Max

Clayface takes shape in theaters on Sept. 11, 2026.

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