Interconnected storytelling between tonally distinct projects has been a hallmark of the comic-book industry for nearly a century now, so it makes sense that filmmakers attempting to emulate the serialized thrills of that medium often end up using the same character in wildly different contexts.
For instance, during the wait for James Watkins’ upcoming Clayface, a standalone origin film for one of Batman’s most horrific villains, fans have put together that we’ve actually already been introduced to DCU’s incarnation of Clayface in December of 2024 – only it wasn’t in live-action.
Voiced by Alan Tudyk and appearing as a minor antagonist defeated by David Harbour’s Erik Frankenstein, the monstrous character appears to have become something of an impersonator for hire in the animated world of Creature Commandos, sometime after the events of Watkins’ movie.
That encounter was directly mentioned in season two of Peacemaker, where Frank Grillo’s Rick Flag Sr. mentions his previous back injury at the hands of the Batman villain.
Viewers were initially skeptical about the connection due to the bizarre tonal shift between projects, but Gunn has since confirmed on social media that the Clayface from the show is indeed the DCU’s version of Matt Hagen, the very same incarnation of the character that’s set to be played by Tom Rhys Harries in the film.
Gunn had already stated that the body-horror-inspired Clayface is actually the chronological first movie in his DCU, so the difference in tone between the horror flick and the more comedic antics of Creature Commandos, which was renewed for a second season, shouldn’t really be an issue when you consider that Hagen has had plenty of time to process his tragic origins and accept his freakish new self.
Either way, it remains to be seen if the movie will also incorporate the character’s classic Golem-like design like the animators did in the show!
