Mike Flanagan Pitched Clayface Movie to DC’s James Gunn, Peter Safran

Mike Flanagan is one of the biggest names working in horror today and should he get his way, he’ll be putting his stamp on the DC Universe before too long at all. Under a sizable deal with Netflix, Flanagan has released limited shows from The Haunting of Hill House to Midnight Mass and The Midnight Club. Now, reports say the filmmaker has talked to James Gunn and Peter Safran about doing a film in the DC Universe featuring Clayface.

In a new story from Deadline, it’s said Flanagan has met with Gunn and Safran to pitch him his take on the iconic Batman villain. According to the initial report, this version of Clayface wouldn’t antagonize Batman or be a DC Universe villain but instead, serve as one of the DCU’s supeheroes. In the same report, it’s said Clayface also happens to be a part of Matt Reeves The Batman: Part II, so it’s unclear if DC Studios would choose to use Flanagan’s project to tie the film to the DC Universe or keep things separate. Either way, it’s said DC Studios hasn’t said “No,” to Flanagan’s pitch just quite yet.

The director himself confirmed the reports on Twitter, saying the meeting was just “speculative” and has yet to become “real.”

Re: CLAYFACE – the news today is entirely speculative. When or if something like that ever becomes real, I promise I'll tell you guys. 🙂

— Mike Flanagan (@flanaganfilm) March 29, 2023

He also hasn’t shied away from talking about his desires to film a Clayface movie, saying so publicly as recently as 2021. “Well I’ve wanted to do a Superman movie since I was a kid,” Flanagan said at the time. “But I would also be really keen to do a standalone Clayface movie as a horror/thriller/tragedy.”

“They didn’t bite on that one,” he tweeted afterward. “Though I’m ready to go anytime.”

Given the timeframe, Flanagan initially pitched the former group of executives at Warner Bros. and DC Films. After restructuring late last year, Gunn and Safran’s DC Studio now exists outside Warner Bros., reporting directly to Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav.

The DC Universe officially kicks off with Creature Commandos, which has yet to set a release date, and Superman: Legacy, which enters theaters July 11, 2025.

What part of Chapter 1: Gods and Monsters excites you most? Let us know your thoughts either in the comments section or by hitting our writer @AdamBarnhardt up on Twitter!