A promising star, a harrowing tragedy, a deep obsession, and a bloody road to revenge. Batman fans rejoice, because we may be in for a horrific treat. The DCU’s Clayface movie is headed to theaters just in time for the spookiest day of the year, and I could see no better time to dive deep into the muddy whirlpool of DC Comics and bring you the full origin of Clayface. Or at least, all the details that seem relevant to the upcoming film. What you may not know is that the history of this monster may be even muddier than you initially thought. Is this a character that deserves his own movie? Do audiences WANT to explore a villain in Gotham BEFORE we’ve even met the hero? Does this seemingly off-universe film have a greater connection to James Gunn’s upcoming DCU slate? Well, in order to answer any of those questions, we need to first learn about exactly who and what we’re dealing with here. Let’s grab a stack of comics and talk about Clayface.
The Golden Age: Basil Karlo’s Tragic & Superpower-Free Origin
Okay, so, firstly, it’s important to note—like many comic book characters that have been around this long—there have been multiple versions of Clayface over the years. From the looks of it, the new film will be combining certain aspects of each to create its own take on just one of them.
The thing is, Clayface is one of those Batman villains where the version most people picture isn’t actually anything like the original. The first Clayface was Basil Karlo, who debuted all the way back in Detective Comics #40 in June 1940, only about a year after Batman himself first appeared. The story was written by Bill Finger, with artwork by Bob Kane and Jerry Robinson, and introduced Karlo as a washed-up horror movie actor rather than the giant shapeshifting mud monster we know today. Karlo discovers that one of his old horror movies is being remade with another actor in his former role, and he doesn’t exactly take the news well. He puts on the creepy mask and costume of “Clayface,” a villain he had played onscreen, and starts murdering members of the new production. Batman and Robin eventually uncover Karlo as the killer and bring his extremely dramatic comeback tour to an end.
The surprising thing about the original Clayface is that he had absolutely no superpowers. No stretching, no turning his hands into giant hammers, no impersonating people by reshaping his face—he was basically a horror-themed serial killer in a mask. Basil Karlo’s whole movie-star gimmick also seems to have been heavily influenced by classic Hollywood horror. Bob Kane later said Clayface was partially inspired by Lon Chaney’s appearance in the 1925 version of The Phantom of the Opera, and even the name “Basil Karlo” is generally understood as a mash-up of horror-era actors Basil Rathbone and Boris Karloff. That’s honestly a pretty perfect name for a Batman villain created in 1940.
Basil didn’t immediately become one of Batman’s major recurring villains, either. His original Golden Age version only made a handful of appearances, including a return in Detective Comics #49 in 1941. Eventually, DC started introducing entirely different people using the Clayface name, beginning with Matt Hagen, and those later versions brought in the shapeshifting powers. Years later, DC circled back around to Basil and essentially merged the concepts, eventually turning the original Clayface into a genuine superpowered Clayface. That’s why modern Basil Karlo can be confusing if you go back and read his first appearance: the guy who eventually becomes a huge walking pile of clay started out as nothing more than an angry actor with a costume and a serious grudge.
The following adaptations have mixed and matched these different Clayfaces almost from the beginning:
- The Animated Series:
- Basil himself has shown up more directly in other adaptations:
- The live-action series:
- The recent series:
- The powers and personality have changed dramatically:
- The original idea has managed to stick around:
The Silver Age: Matt Hagen and the Birth of the Mud Monster
The second character to take up the Clayface name was Matt Hagen, and he’s arguably responsible for turning Clayface into the villain we actually recognize today. Hagen debuted in Detective Comics #298 in December 1961, in a story called “The Challenge of Clay-Face,” created by writer Bill Finger and artist Sheldon Moldoff. Unlike Basil Karlo, who was basically a disgruntled horror actor wearing a creepy costume, Hagen was a treasure hunter who stumbled across a strange underground pool of radioactive protoplasm. After being exposed to it, his entire body transformed into a clay-like substance that he could reshape at will. Suddenly, Clayface wasn’t just a guy with a mask anymore; he could change his face, impersonate other people, alter his body, and basically become whatever shape the story needed him to be.
The catch was that Hagen’s powers were originally temporary, lasting only about 48 hours before he needed to expose himself to the protoplasm again. That limitation became major part of his early stories, with Hagen repeatedly trying to find ways of extending or restoring his abilities while Batman and Robin figured out how to exploit his weaknesses. It’s also worth remembering that this was 1961 during Batman’s wonderfully bizarre Silver Age period; so discovering magical-looking radioactive puddles wasn’t particularly strange by Batman standards. Still, it worked. Matt Hagen established basic visual and power set: a shapeshifting human made out of living clay that almost every famous version of Clayface has borrowed from ever since.
<p<Hagen continued popping up throughout Silver and Bronze Ages and even crossed over into wider DC Universe including joining Queen Bee's Anti-Justice League. His original story eventually came to fairly definitive end during Crisis on Infinite Earths, when Hagen was killed by one of Anti-Monitor’s Shadow Demons. DC being DC didn’t keep him gone forever; later continuity brought Matt Hagen back into picture. His original origin was also revisited in 1990s in Batman: Legends of Dark Knight #89–90 which essentially retold modernized basic premise of his 1961 debut.
The biggest contribution outside comics is probably Clayface from The Animated Series:. Voiced by Ron Perlman, that version is named Matt Hagen and has shapeshifting powers associated with comic character; but backstory is actually mash-up multiple Clayfaces. The animated Hagen is an actor whose career is threatened after face badly disfigured borrowing Hollywood/actor angle much more heavily associated with Basil Karlo. The result is basically amalgamation first two Clayfaces; two-part “Feat of Clay” became one show’s most memorable villain stories.
This version again mixes elements from character’s history: Hagen is an actor who becomes disfigured ultimately undergoes procedure transforms body into clay. So there’s something kind fitting about Matt being center movie. Basil Karlo may have been first Clayface but Matt Hagen was character introduced powers made Clayface unique Batman villain first place.
You’ve also seen other wacky interpretations character like Preston Payne Sondra Fuller who both became Clayface at different points Somewhere between they met had baby named “Clay” who also became Clayface for while It… I don’t know… It taps into some Seed of Chucky type shit gets little too weird for me I don’t think movie will have any those elements but thought worth mentioning like 12 people out there consider Cassius “Clay” Payne definitive take on Clayface…
What We Know About Upcoming Live-Action Movie
NNow with idea merging Basil Matt into one character keeping most interesting aspects each think Clayface movie has some serious potential We already know few important things like WILL be getting some kind mud-monster transformation where Matt uses mutation take someone out We know he’s up-and-coming actor from Gotham who has something vague yet sinister done him after getting mixed up wrong people And we know according James Gunn director James Watkins this movie will take place BEFORE events current DCU timeline So anything we see in Ssuperman , Ssupergirl , Ppeacemaker , or present-day timeline Llanterns has not happened yet.
This movie? Well simply acclaimed writer director Mike Flanagan wrote what saw twisted adaptation “Feat Clay” after remarking he’d always loved Bbatman: Animated Series as kid A writer caliber THIS many good movies under belt nothing shrug at so James Gunn Peter Safran bought script offered Flanagan seat director film Unfortunately Flanagan busy working on Carrie TV series couldn’t commit gig So went James Watkins another talented filmmaker now who knows what still remains Flanagan’s original script.
I think what we’re looking at film originally written unconnected Elseworlds story tradition Matt Reeves’ Tthe Batman Todd Phillips’ Kjoker , but Gunn enjoyed so much saw angle make fit into world opted make prequel film set DCU so it could maintain having little connection previously established continuity Basically I don’t expect this movie push DCU forward rather help fill it stories help make all feel lived-in.
Why DC Fans Should Be Excited for Clayface?
SSo why should care? In my opinion James Gunn’s DCU off interesting start. Ssuperman made debut seems favorable among most fans (definitely not ALL fans) plus we had Ppeacemaker Season 2 which enjoyed lot, Ssupergirl which (think) everyone hated (thought fine) recent Llanterns on HBO Max currently loving seems like pretty much everyone else too.
BBut there has been no shortage strange upcoming movie TV announcements studio At one point there announcement Bane Deathstroke movie there’s puppet movie Dick Grayson Jason Todd Robins there was point Sergeant Rock film coming up whole catalogue seemingly random characters getting new movie series Nothing could AS random when DC made show called Pennyworth: Origin Batman’s Butler , but Gunn seems bit all over place upcoming slate.
I’m saying because Clayface may FEEL like one those projects It’s DCU canon movie set Gotham probably doesn’t have Batman it getting BEFORE we’ve even seen DCU Batman live action (know shadow was Creature Commandos but does NOT count) But if look closer upcoming movie think reason DOES matter because written its own thing now happens exist universe DCU Had decision been different this movie would just Flanagan Watkins horror film dark take familiar character THAT cool So don’t throw movie out rest DCU if you’re not fan This movie could just thing change mind.
The post Clayface Origin & History: What to Expect from DCU Horror Movie appeared first on JoBlo.
