Matt Hagen's meteoric rise from Gotham street kid to Hollywood leading man is tragically cut short when the actions of a local crime boss leave him horribly disfigured. He soon seeks out a cutting-edge treatment that miraculously returns him to his former self, but also affects his grip on reality, spiraling him down a destructive path of all-consuming revenge.

Director: James Watkins

Cast: Tom Rhys Harries, Naomi Ackie, Max Minghella, Eddie Marsan, David Dencik, Nancy Carroll

Rotten Tomatoes: 73%

Metacritic: 59 / 100

Some Reviews (updating):

The Hollywood Reporter - Frank Scheck - 80 / 100

With its grimy visuals and pulpy dialogue redolent of comic books in the most evocative way, Clayface delivers the sort of psychological depth and emotional resonance that enable it to bear comparisons to the works of such body horror maestros as David Cronenberg and Sam Raimi.

Variety - Guy Lodge

This all gives solid (more or less) real-world grounding to the wilder body-horror antics that we’re really here for, and “Clayface” more than delivers the goods on that front. Abetted by consistently inspired prosthetics work, there’s enough stomach-churning, actually face-melting corporeal silly-putty play here to make sense of the film’s Halloween-friendly release date, and at least one dynamite gross-out setpiece — involving fused eyelids, nail scissors and a brutal bout of plane turbulence — that will fuel nightmares well into the coming months.

The Wrap - William Bibbiani

A decent monster movie, with all the straightforward entertainment value that comes with telling a story about a wet pile of gelatinous flesh that kills people.

Original Cin - John Kirk - 'A-'

Obviously, this is a film that can be easily shaped – like clay – for future stories. A popular story, excellent performances, and an engaging anti-hero main character is a recipe for entertainment.

Inverse - Hoai-Tran Bui

Despite Harries’ sympathetic performance — you genuinely buy how a good guy can turn into a vengeful monster — and his simmering chemistry with Ackie, who equally gives more depth to her character than the script offers, Clayface is less than the sum of its parts. Its glimmers of potential only give us peeks at the better movies it could’ve been, while an underbaked script and laughably clunky dialogue only seal the deal: this was a failed experiment that should’ve never left the lab.

The Telegraph - Robbie Collin - 4 / 5

It cannot be overstated how much fun it is to soak up a film like this on what feels like its creators’ largely unhindered terms. Aside from the occasional reference to Gotham City, in fact, you could feasibly leave a screening of Clayface with no idea you’d been watching a franchise movie. At this painfully risk-averse moment for the major studios, that may be the best we can hope for.

The AU Review - Peter Gray - 4 / 5

A gruesome, uncompromising and unexpectedly affecting descent into villainy, Clayface finds DC Studios embracing its darker instincts with considerable confidence. It may not be the crowd-pleasing comic book adventure some audiences expect, but its willingness to be genuinely monstrous is precisely what makes it so worthwhile.

The Post NZ - James Croot - 4 / 5

Undeniably squirm-inducing and gooey, Clayface is not for the faint of heart or needle-averse, but it arguably finally gives Obsession a real rival as the year’s best cinematic horror.

Consequence - Liz Shannon Miller - 'B'

The scariest, freakiest movie ever made based on a DC Comics property (insert your own jokes here about Gene Hackman's Superman wig).

Time Out - Helen O'Hara - 4 / 5

Unlike other comic book villain-centric stories – Venom, say, or Joker – Watkins keeps you guessing whether any part of the deeply sympathetic Hagen is redeemable, and manages to stick the landing better than any of those other villain arcs. His movie’s Gotham, a twisted reflection of the American dream, is fascinating too. It’s the best DC film in years – if your stomach can stand it.

San Francisco Chronicle - Zaki Hasan - 75 / 100

“Clayface” is practiced pastiche, drawing on a tradition of sympathetic monstrosity stretching back to Mary Shelley. But as proof of concept for a DC Universe that can accommodate stories beyond the usual superhero spectacle, it largely works.

The Independent - Clarisse Loughrey - 3 / 5

A great body-horror movie but a terrible DC Comics film | Welsh actor Tom Rhys Harries proves he’s a star to watch – but the film that surrounds him doesn’t quite live up to its potential

IGN - Jim Vejvoda - 7 / 10

Clayface is at its best when it embraces its B-movie absurdity. It’s a fun body horror romp that realizes its nasty potential in its final act after a slow-burn set-up. It may be a “DC movie” but a casual filmgoer doesn't need to know any Batman lore to enjoy it. They just have to have the stomach for when things get squeamish. The film largely employs old school practical makeup effects to cleverly and gruesomely depict Matt Hagen’s transformations, with Tom Rhys Harries’ desperate, driven performance further selling the illusion of a man becoming a monster.

Metro - Tori Brazier - 3 / 5

Clayface has enough acting chops and hacking-off-of-chops to satisfy fans looking for a good, grisly time – even if there’s a nagging feeling it could have been a bit more significant.

The Australian - Nikki Gemmell - 3 / 5

What this James Watkins movie doesn’t have is tone or personality. A distinct directorial stamp. Yes, big jump scares, but middling special effects and indifferent world building; this could be any city. This is not a seamless trio of DC Universe films.

AwardsRadar - Joey Magidson - 3 / 4

Clayface, ultimately, is fine. Gorehounds will get a kick out of the body horror, even if this falls short of The Fly or The Substance levels. As a standalone DC effort, it’s solid enough, and feels far more successful overall than the Spider-Man-less villain films Sony has been trying to make happen. At the same time, there’s a much better movie in here somewhere, so whether we get a sequel to pursue that or not, there’s an undeniable sense that this is a bit of a missed opportunity, acceptable as it overall is.

The Globe and Mail - Barry Hertz - 60 / 100

For a movie about a pile of sentient goo that can will itself to look like anyone or anything, there is a disheartening lack of self-awareness, or self-respect, when it comes to Clayface’s blatant cinematic cribbing.

Slant Magazine - Jake Cole - 3 / 4

In this vision, Gotham isn’t just a city held in thrall to organized crime but a place where corruption seems to seep into every corner of civic life. Its pervasive cruelty makes it easy to understand why a hero who wields fear as a weapon would find such fertile ground here—and why Batman’s particular brand of vigilantism might seem less like a choice than a necessity. As a standalone property, Clayface is a surprisingly sturdy, compelling horror-thriller. As an oblique table-setter for a coming update of Batman, it’s a stroke of brilliance.

Associated Press - Mark Kennedy - 3 / 4

There’s a charming low-rent vibe to “Clayface” after so much expensive bombast from Marvel and DC. Parts of Gotham were shot on real streets — thanks, Liverpool — and practical effects were encouraged over computers. No less than a huge cockroach makes us squeal and one of the best gross-out bits happens in an airplane bathroom as our hero tries to cut skin growing over his eyes with scissors — during turbulence.

DiscussingFilm - Ryan Gaur - 4 / 5

Clayface works as a lean, focused character piece with appropriately gruesome action. Other live-action DCU projects like James Gunn’s Superman (2025), Craig Gillespie’s Supergirl (2026), and HBO’s Lanterns had the responsibility of establishing pillars of the universe, introducing important lore, or recovering the reputation of an IP. Clayface makes full use of its freedom from those expectations. Removed from the DCU, though, it still excels as a splatty B movie and shows the variety of stories the comic book genre can tell beyond big crossover spectacles.

Moviefone - Don Kaye - 67 / 100

‘Clayface,’ while certainly an okay time at the movies for under two hours, doesn’t have the gravitas to support that baggage. In the end, it feels small and perhaps insignificant. James Watkins does deliver some nasty shocks and a number of unsettling images, and Tom Rhys Harries shows off real chops. It's the modern equivalent of a B-level horror movie, while also giving us the beginnings of a villain before we even know who the heroes are.

The Times - Ed Potton - 3 / 5

The British leads are impressive, Harries channelling Demi Moore in The Substance, Ackie the biotech renegade Elizabeth Holmes, and there is a knowing cameo from Rob Brydon as a smarmy talk show host.

South China Morning Post - James Mottram - 3.5 / 5

From alluding to films such as Brian Yuzna’s Society (1989) and Troma’s The Toxic Avenger (1984), to featuring an unexpected and hilarious dance sequence in Markos’ club – intercut with some truly twisted shape-shifting – Clayface moulds its elements into something original and often horrifying.

TechRadar - Tom Power - 3.5 / 5

Part-monster movie, part-Shakespearean tragedy, Clayface is a film of captivating contradictions. Driven by Harries' powerhouse lead performance, it delivers a surprisingly intimate and tragic character-driven story that explores the artificiality of fame, and puts a devotedly modern day spin on 'Feat of Clay', the two-part Batman: The Animated Series tale, it's inspired by. Even so, its hesitation to fully embrace its primary genre underpinnings, coupled with a few underbaked subplots and underutilized shape-shifting gags, holds it back from true greatness.

Boston Globe - Matt Juul - 50 / 100

Lacking scares, stars, or a breakout performance like that of Inde Navarette’s in “Obsession,” “Clayface” is unlikely to join that new horror pantheon.

Looper - Dominic Griffin - 6 / 10

The result is a film that has these fleeting passages that feel like detritus from Flanagan's original vision mixed in with the take seemingly designed to fit better into this new franchise. Skittish about any explicit world-building that could cause continuity issues for the future "The Brave and The Bold" project that is still in flux, Gunn and company have created the Gotham that may as well be a nameless fictional city. This is supposed to be the same Clayface briefly seen in the HBO Max show "Creature Commandos," just earlier in his "career." But while this film is very tenuously a prequel to that animated series, it feels like a technicality at best.

AV Club - Jesse Hassenger - 'B-'

The more important contemporary comparison probably wouldn’t be The Substance but rather those movies in the Spidey Universe Of Cinematic Killers at Sony. The company would repeatedly tee up monstrous Spider-Man villains only to immediately back away and reconceive them as antiheroes with essentially decent hearts. Watkins and Flanagan have far too much sense to pull any of that here; Hagen’s Clayface makes for a pitiable creature and sometimes a deliciously wicked one, as in a set piece where he infiltrates a gangster nightclub. But he’s not here to do the right thing. Like a classic monster, his unusual physique and his human weaknesses team up to foster his ultimate alienation.

Empire - Sophie Butcher - 3 / 5

While Clayface disappoints with its lack of depth, it absolutely delivers a strong lead performance from Harries, and buckets of bloodthirsty body horror.

The Guardian - Benjamin Lee - 2 / 5

Clayface is as poorly lit and junkily made as the very blandest of streaming movies and never once do we feel transported to Gotham with a cast of exclusively non-American actors trying to out-accent each other (Eddie Marsan, as ever, loses that game). It doesn’t help that what could have been interesting at one point (perhaps when Flanagan was the sole author) with briefly pointed at issues of AI, unreality and method acting, has been sanded down to a kill-by-numbers revenge thriller led by a character who feels like an off-brand swirl of Venom, Hulk, Joker and Mystique. His abilities, and the rules of how they work, are so poorly defined, that he just becomes a screenwriting device, able to do whatever is needed in the moment.

GamesRadar - Bradley Russell - 3 / 5

Clayface, then, struggles to balance its dual personalities. As a superhero movie, it's a freakishly good time, setting itself apart from anything put out by DC and Marvel in terms of tone and terror. But as a horror movie, its skin-deep thrills and spills mask an uneven tragedy that even the emerging star power of Tom Rhys Harries can't overcome completely.

United Press International - Fred Topel

Matt’s story is tragic as any honest revenge tale is. He is literally driven mad and becomes a monster, so the life he had before remains unattainable. He'll have to settle for a role in The Batman 3.

Screen Daily - Tim Grierson - 50 / 100

Director James Watkins provides B-movie grit, and Tom Rhys Harries is sympathetic as a Hollywood star who becomes disfigured and seeks a radical facial treatment, losing his soul in the process. But the picture’s combination of monster movie and love story ultimately suffers from a critical weakness: neither the presentation nor the tragic antihero is novel enough to sustain a full-length feature.

IndieWire - Kate Erbland - 'C+'

A few meaty set pieces help, too, including a truly stomach-churning sequence set on an airplane (turbulence and nanocells are a bad mix) and a third act that gives Rhys Harries plenty to chew on (to say nothing of some of Matt’s biggest foes). But the uneven nature of the film, its plotting, its character motivations, and its aims only become bigger and bloodier as the film winds on. Malleable, sure, but this ambitious misfire can never conform to one shape, one final form, or one good idea.

RogerEbert - Brian Tallerico - 1.5 / 4

“Clayface” ultimately gets to a few memorable set pieces, including a series of violent deaths in Vesuvius that might offer enough “ooh” moments to satisfy hardcore DC fans. And it’s always nice to see major studios explore the world of comic books in a way that doesn’t always center the same iconic heroes and villains. DC has found a lot of creative and commercial success with projects like “Lanterns” and, of course, “Joker,” projects that took risks, and projects that had strong POVs. A movie shouldn’t spoon feed you its themes, but it also needs to put more than misshapen mush on your plate.

USA Today - Brian Truitt - 2 / 4

James Watkins’ unnerving, frustrating thriller can only do so much melting Tom Rhys Harries’ sharp features amid a bunch of creepy scenes and a severe lack of character development, and the film doesn’t add that much to the expanding DC universe either.

Rolling Stone - David Fear - 20 / 100

Watching this intriguing-on-paper chronicle of a Batman supervillain once again recast as a tragic antihero, one who’s dealing with the psychological fallout of his newly batshit physical state, is the equivalent of eating a handful of Play-Doh™, and twice as flavorless.

SlashFilm - Chris Evangelista - 5.5 / 10

"Clayface" deserves credit for wanting to be little more than a violent monster movie with some familiar IP branding — thank god there's no attempts at pretentious seriousness here. But the simplicity ultimately hurts the film's goals, rendering what could've been a memorable weird revenge horror movie into a shapeless, underwhelming experience.

The Playlist - Rodrigo Perez - 'C-'

And therein lies the grand irony: a film about our obsession with appearances and the desperate need to find self-worth beyond them ultimately proves far more accomplished at creating an impressive image than discovering anything meaningful beneath its surface.

Dread Central - Matt Konopka - 3 / 5

DC Studios first genre outing under James Gunn’s leadership delivers a muddy mixed bag of melty body horror and tonal inconsistencies.

NY Post - Johnny Oleksinki - 3 / 4

While that sounds like any number of comic-book set-ups, say “Spider-Man” or “Deadpool,” the mood and motive here are vastly different. Matt is a desperate and attention-starved man. Ravenous, he needs fame and its addictive trappings back pronto. And, once the doc treats him and discovers he can shape-shift into other people, Matt doesn’t use his powers to save any puppies or Girl Scouts. It’s killin’ time.

Lifestyle Asia - Pilar Gonzalez

Its eventual turn toward melodrama feels unearned, if not a little nonsensical. It cuts short what could’ve been a more complex, emotionally weighty story about identity and the lengths people are willing to go to out of desperation, ultimately leaving the film feeling somewhat lacking. Still, despite Clayface’s bumps and lumps, I can’t help but applaud the change of pace. As someone who’s rather tired of what’s come out of the woodwork in recent years, I found this villain origin story to be some good fun, perhaps the most I’ve had with a big superpower-related film in a while.

Flickering Myth - Robert Kojder - 2 / 5

Clayface‘s most impressive aspect is how disappointingly boring it is, as if whatever promise there is slips away as quickly as the skin falling off Matt’s face. Hopefully, one day, DC can shape itself into a promising universe, but lately, with each entry, that prospect is fading fast. I left wondering if the fake Gotham City Academy Award-nominated movies are any better than Clayface. They have to be.

MovieWeb - Molly Freeman - 2.5 / 5

All told, Clayface better serves those interested in its body horror premise than audiences compelled to see it because it's based on a DC character. There's little to no connective tissue to the wider universe, aside from its setting in Gotham and depiction of the city's corrupt police force and judicial system. If you're squeamish with body horror or blood, I'd recommend sitting this one out. Unfortunately, Clayface isn't a must-see horror movie, or a must-see DC movie; it's a middling Batman villain origin story film with horror trappings that wholly squanders its potential.

Fresh Fiction - Courtney Howard - 'C'

As compelling as it is confounding and as fun as it is frustrating, it’s amongst the year’s most perplexing pictures.

AwardsWatch - Cody Dericks

Clayface should and can be applauded more for what it sets out to do than what it accomplishes. That may seem like faint praise, but as the latest entry in a genre that’s been dying for some variety, it’s a relief that the film is so atypically small-scale and comparatively gnarly. Even if it can’t help but feel limited in its storytelling, perhaps it will be received well enough to convince other directors (and studios) that it’s okay, you don’t have to be afraid to take risks and try new things with comic book movies. But as it stands, Clayface is a greater achievement of ambition rather than actual execution. Hopefully it leads future films in the genre to be made with an approach as flexible as Matt Hagen’s nanobot-invaded face.

ScreenRant - Graeme Guttmann - 7 / 10

Really, the only thing the movie asks us to care about is Matt and his relationship with Caitlyn, another tricky thread the movie navigates. When Matt eventually crosses the line to true villainy, it's backed up by a solid, visually engrossing story that has its weak spots, but proves to be more of a good time than it has any right to be. Too often in Clayface, Matt flirts with disaster, echoing the film's own trajectory. But it wouldn't achieve what it does if it didn't get so close to the line before slithering its way over it.

CBR - Chris La Vigna - 6 / 10

The tone stays jarring and its pace tight, but the final scene — which feels both heartbreaking and definitely something that was put together in reshoots — fails to have the lasting impact it should. Clayface is a bold swing, and perhaps it will be viewed more favorably with time. But right now, much like its lead character, the film feels a bit empty inside.

ScreenCrush - Matt Singer - 6 / 10

Let’s not mince words: Clayface is a pretty gross dude. He’s a walking pile of muck. If you’re gonna make a movie about him, it better make audiences squirm. As a tragic character study of a broken man, Clayface never really digs below the surface. As an amusingly icky horror movie, it actually does get under your skin.

Primera Hora - Jonathan Santos - 2.5 / 5

Given the nature of its story and what the protagonist goes through, this film could have explored an intriguing narrative about identity but instead settles for developing a superficial plot of revenge and obsession.

NBP - Giovanni Lago - 5 / 10

There are moments when “Clayface” starts to become something interesting, mainly a voyeuristic moment where Caitlyn’s evaluation of Matt’s sleep cycle turns into something equal parts terrifying and inadvertently erotic. It’s all but brief before the film morphs itself back into an uninteresting revenge thriller that isn’t all grotesque as it plays itself up to be. Some clever editing tricks appear whenever Matt’s evolving bodily control leads to his rapid transformations. The make-up work is impressive at times, but the dependence on visual effects occasionally waters down the impressive practicality on display. If Flanagan had stepped in over Watkins, “Clayface” could’ve had far more visual flair or commitment to its central premise, but that didn’t happen, and what we’re left with is a missed opportunity.

Polygon - Brian VanHooker - 36 / 100

You know those so-so superhero movies where the villain is kind of dull and two-dimensional, but you can get through it because you like the hero so much? Think of Iron Man 2 or Thor: The Dark World or something like that. Now imagine one of those movies also without the beloved superhero in it and you’ll have a pretty good idea of what it’s like watching DC’s terrible new Clayface movie, which tells an underwhelming story filled with uninteresting characters.

Hi reddit, I'm actress Milly Shapiro. You may know me from Ari Aster's HEREDITARY! I also played Matilda on Broadway in 2013's Matilda The Musical.

I play Pumpkin in HALLOWARRIOR, my first feature film since HEREDITARY. It's written & directed by Ben Sottak and it was just released on Shudder last weekend after premiering at Tribeca in June.

It's the perfect movie for your Halloween watchlist!

Synopsis:

Halloween-obsessed Pumpkin thinks she's the last person alive. But when scavengers show up at her doorstep, Pumpkin has no choice but to tap into her deadliest survival instincts.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORjn6ox53_U

AMA!

I'll be back to answer questions around 2:30-3:00 PM ET this afternoon, Wednesday 9/21.

This movie is pure fun, nonstop energy that keeps you invested. I've always enjoyed Christian Slater and felt like he should have been a bigger name, and this has got to be one of his best roles. I never cared for Patricia Arquette too much but she won me over here with her spunky portrayal as Alabama. She is too cool when she faces off against Gandolfini and keeps laughing hysterically despite getting her butt kicked. The comedy and action is gold. The scenes with Gary Oldman as the dreadlocked pimp and Walken and Hopper exchanging insults with eggplants and cantaloupes, are incredible. How many times have you watched this movie?

Hello reddit. I'm Alden Ehrenreich. You may know me from Weapons, Hail, Caesar!, Solo: A Star Wars Story, Oppenheimer, Fair Play, Blue Jasmine, Cocaine Bear, amongst other things.

My newest film is A Talent For Murder. I co-star in it alongside the legendary Helen Mirren (as Patricia Highsmith!!!) and Olivia Cooke. It premiered at TIFF a few weeks ago and it's out in theaters everywhere starting Oct. 23 (via Bleecker Street). To celebrate the release, I'll be here later today to answer questions.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzFgGhFrx0o

Synopsis: A mysterious young man from a New York publisher is sent to Switzerland to persuade the renowned writer Patricia Highsmith to write one final installment of the Ripley anthology.

Directed by: Anton Corbijn (A Most Wanted Man, The American)

Ask me anything! (Back around 1 PM PT/4 PM ET this afternoon to answer questions)

I live with a friend and her two kids, an 8 year old boy and a 10 year old girl.

We’ve started a movie night tradition once or twice a month, with the movies picked by their mum and I. Looking for suggestions for age appropriate movies (not the horror and trash I was watching at their ages)

My next choice is Casper or Jumanji.

Thanks

In Europe this film franchise is quite well-known. Especially among millenial generation here. Sadly it is not really well-known outside of Europe. It is funny actually that there are films that are super popular in certain continent and regions but do not have huge popularity outside of they market.

I remember being a kid, i often spoke with my friends and classmates and everybody knew this film. It was really super popular franchise in my country. Later when i started to read a lot about films on internet. I started to realise that this French film franchise is not popular outside of Europe at all. It is one of those fun type of films that suddenly become popular but are not considered as a high art in general, but become part of culture in certain places.

People on this subreddit from different countries, do we have fan of this film franchise? This franchise is written by Luc Besson but he never directed them.

My favorite part is probably 2 film, when to start a car, they have to say key word '' Ninja'' but if you want to stop an engine, they have to say word ''Jap'' in offensive way.

What's the best movie you've watched so far in 2026? Doesn't matter if it's Bollywood, Hollywood, Korean, Japanese, or any other film industry. Any genre works thriller, action, horror, sci-fi, romance, or drama. Suggest movies that are genuinely worth watching, including underrated gems. Please mention why you recommend it, but no spoilers! 🍿