Credit: DC / Warner Bros.James Gunn and Peter Safran’s DC Universe (DCU) is now firmly in motion, with last year’s Superman (2025) having served as the official launch point for the rebooted franchise. Starring David Corenswet (Clark Kent/Kal-El/Superman), the film reset DC’s interconnected slate, establishing a new continuity that will expand across both film and television.
What DCU Movies Are Coming Next?
The next wave of films includes Supergirl (2026), starring Milly Alcock as Kara Zor-El/Supergirl, followed by Clayface (2026), which continues the studio’s push into more genre-driven storytelling by centering on a Batman villain in what’s being described as a “body-horror” film.
Who’s Playing Batman in the DCU?
One of the most closely watched projects in the lineup, however, is The Brave and the Bold (TBA), directed by Andy Muschietti (2023’s The Flash). The film is expected to introduce the DCU’s Batman, although Warner Bros. has yet to formally cast (or reveal) the actor playing Bruce Wayne.
Since the DCU was announced, speculation has swirled around whether Robert Pattinson’s version of Batman from Matt Reeves’ The Batman (2022) could be folded into the shared universe. James Gunn has repeatedly addressed the idea, suggesting it would remain separate, though comments over time have left room for continued fan debate.
Unbeknownst to many fans, however, the DCU’s Batman has already been teased in limited form through HBO’s animated series Creature Commandos (2024), where a brief silhouette offered the first glimpse of the character in the new continuity.
First DCU Batman Movie Releases This Year
Villain-focused projects bring us back to Clayface, a project that sits firmly within Batman’s wider Rogues’ Gallery, even if the Caped Crusader himself is expected to be absent from the film. Clayface stars Tom Rhys Harries as Matt Hagen, a struggling actor who becomes the iconic shape-shifting villain. Written by Mike Flanagan and directed by James Watkins, the film takes a horror-leaning approach to one of Gotham City’s most unstable figures.
At this year’s CinemaCon (April 13–16), DC Studios presented the first footage exclusively to attendees in a closed-room screening. According to Variety, it leans heavily into grotesque body-horror violence.
“The trailer shows Matt sitting in a hospital bed with a bandaged, bloody face,” the outlet writes. “He’s attacked by a knife-wielding assailant and has mysterious chemicals pumped into him, giving him his powers. Matt’s face changes repeatedly, showing him without an eye or mouth at times, and in the final moments he’s sitting in a bathtub and wipes away his entire face. There’s also a shadowy shot of him with a giant, mace-shaped fist, just like how he would pummel Batman in the DC comics.”
Related: James Gunn’s DCU Falls Apart as Zack Snyder Confirms That Henry Cavill Is Still Superman
First Look at Film’s Lead Actor
Now, DC has begun rolling out the film’s marketing campaign, as the first official promotional image has been released in the form of an in-universe magazine cover featuring lead actor Tom Rhys Harries as “Rising Star Matt Hagen.” While the image avoids revealing any form of the character’s eventual monstrous Clayface transformation, it offers the first proper look at Harries within the DCU. The image was shared by clayfacemovie and dcofficial on Instagram:
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The timing also lines up with reports that the first full trailer for Clayface is expected to arrive this Wednesday, April 22, marking the start of a wider promotional push following its CinemaCon debut.
Clayface stars Tom Rhys Harries, Naomi Ackie, Max Minghella, Eddie Marsan, and David Dencik.
With Supergirl releasing on June 26, Clayface on October 23, and the Superman sequel Man of Tomorrow (2027) on July 9 next year—and The Brave and the Bold in development—the DCU continues to build its world piece by piece.
Are you excited about Clayface? And who would you cast as the next Dark Knight? Drop your thoughts below and stay tuned for more updates as the DCU continues to unfold!
