Is Batman In The DCU's Clayface Movie? Everything You Need To Know

Published Oct 22, 2026, 5:58 PM EDT Felipe Rangel is a Movie and TV Journalist ScreenRant. He has been writing about movies and TV since 2021. Felipe joined ScreenRant in 2022, working across different teams, covering everything from breaking news to features to reviews and more. Felipe is a writer who is an avid film and TV fan, with superhero movies and series being his biggest passion. He graduated from college in 2019, having studied Journalism. Before college, he spent a month studying at the Oxford English Centre. His superhero knowledge expands to the comics, with his undergraduate thesis being "Politics Reflected In American Comics." Warning! This article includes SPOILERS for Clayface.Clayface is now playing in theaters, and with the DC Universe movie's release comes the confirmation of whether Batman appears in the film. Robert Pattinson is the current main live-action version of Bruce Wayne for DC. The actor debuted in Matt Reeves' The Batman and will finally return in The Batman - Part II in 2028. However, he exists in a separate universe. The fact that Pattinson will not cross over to James Gunn's DCU as the shared universe's Batman has been confirmed multiple times over the years. The DCU will feature its own Bruce Wayne, with the Batman movie The Brave and the Bold currently in development for the franchise. That film is said to feature Damian Wayne, Bruce's biological son, unless DC's plans have changed. That said, years before The Brave and the Bold, which has yet to receive a release date, arrives, Clayface is currently in the spotlight. The R-rated Batman villain movie explores Tom Rhys Harries' Matt Hagen and how the character goes from a movie star to the monster seen in the animated Creature Commandos series. Clayface also features the DCU's Gotham City in live-action. Scratch & Peek Identify the cover art while scratching off as little foil as possible. Given that the new DCU movie is set in Gotham and how Clayface is a major Batman villain, DC fans have long speculated that the new Dark Knight could debut in the movie in a cameo role. The franchise did do that with Milly Alcock's Supergirl in 2025's Superman, setting a precedent. So, does the DCU Batman make his franchise debut in the Clayface movie? Batman Does Not Appear In Clayface © Warner Bros. / Courtesy Everett Collection Batman is nowhere to be seen in Clayface, despite the fans' theories about how the Dark Knight could be included. In fact, Clayface is a fairly self-contained DCU movie, focusing on the psychological downfall of Hagen, rather than setting up future DCU releases. The decision not to have Batman make his live-action debut in Clayface makes sense. After all, The Brave and the Bold might be in development, but the project has no clear timeline at the moment. Having Batman appear in the DCU movie, only to potentially sit out for years, would have brought back negative flashbacks from the DCEU's operating style. While Batman is not present in Clayface, Harries crafts a compelling and nuanced character with his version of Clayface. Matt Hagen has quite the tragic backstory, and the journey he goes on ends with the character in a very different state than the one he starts the movie in. By having Clayface turn into his full-on monster form in this superhero horror hybrid, the final DCU movie of 2026 is setting him up to face Batman in the future. As such, the Dark Knight does not need to appear for fans to understand what Clayface's life should look like down the line. Does Batman Exist In Clayface's Gotham? While Batman might not physically appear in Clayface, that does not mean that he is not off having his own adventures in Gotham City while the events of the new DC movie are happening. In fact, during a new interview with Collider, DC Studios co-CEO Peter Safran addressed where Batman is during Clayface. According to the executive, Batman is indeed off in the world, already being a superhero as Matt Hagen becomes Clayface in this origin story. Safran was also directly asked about just how much him and DC Studios' creative chief, James Gunn, discussed where Batman is during Clayface. Safran revealed that the DC team did not really come up with a specific answer as to what Batman was doing while Clayface's origin story was playing out. The biggest connection in the movie is really the fact that Clayface serves as the DCU's introduction to the franchise's live-action Gotham City. Safran did also note that Batman appeared in a non-speaking cameo role in HBO Max's animated Creature Commandos, where the Dark Knight showed up to arrest Doctor Phosphorus. In fact, that show is where both characters appear, even though they do not interact, as Clayface fights Rick Flag Sr. and Eric Frankenstein. Why Clayface Was Right Not To Include Batman Clayface's decision not to include Batman was for the best, and that is true for two reasons. The first is the fact that had Batman made his DCU debut in Clayface, that would have been all everyone would be talking about. Sure, Supergirl showed up at the end of Superman, and that did not happen, but the Man of Steel is one of DC's two biggest heroes. Batman leads that list, and Clayface is not a mainstream character outside the comics. As such, this movie needed to be all about servicing Matt Hagen's story, making fans connect with him, so no Batman was the right choice. The second reason is the fact that Batman is perhaps the most important character to get right when it comes to casting. As such, it would be ideal that whoever ends up directing the Dark Knight's upcoming solo movie, The Brave and the Bold, were to have direct input in the casting process to find DC's new Batman. Additionally, given how that Batman movie does not have a release date yet, had Batman made a cameo in Clayface, there would have been too long a wait for his live-action return. Fans do not need a similar The Batman - Part II situation. Clayface Could Still Face Batman In The DCU's Future Finally, the fact that Batman does not appear in Clayface does not mean the two characters will never have the chance to cross paths in future DCU projects. While it is unlikely that DC will order a Clayface sequel, given how the villain's origin story has been told and there are bigger characters that come up as more urgent for DC's movie slate, Harries could very well return as Clayface in future Batman movies, TV shows starring Batman characters, and more. In fact, there is now a bigger chance that Clayface and Batman will meet in the DCU. After all, DC now has a full movie of backstory for Clayface, which would enhance that meeting whenever it happens. Fans who connected with Matt Hagen as he descended into a dark path will still feel for him when he fights Batman as a villain, and that is why Clayface makes more sense to face the Dark Knight than some other Batman villains. For now, it remains to be seen when exactly the DCU's Batman will debut, and when Clayface will return after his solo movie. Release Date October 23, 2026 Runtime 108 Minutes Director James Watkins Cast Tom Rhys Harries Matt Hagen / Clayface Naomi Ackie Dr. Caitlin Bates