Clayface Debuts With Mixed Reviews Ahead of October 23 Release

Q: Why did horror master Mike Flanagan distance himself from DC’s bold new body-horror experiment just before its release?

Mike Flanagan distanced himself from *Clayface* because the finished film was substantially reshaped after he turned in his script and exited the project, leaving him with little or no creative control over what reached theaters. Flanagan has said plainly that the movie “very much is not mine” and called it “James Watkins’ movie.” According to his own account, he wrote a script he loved, submitted it, and that was effectively the end of his involvement. He also said he had not even seen the finished film before release, which explains why he was careful not to present it as his vision. The separation appears to have happened for practical and creative reasons. Flanagan originally developed *Clayface* as a passion project, at one stage with Matt Reeves, but became tied up with other work, including Prime Video’s *Carrie*. DC then moved forward without him, bringing in director James Watkins and writer Hossein Amini. Reports described Amini’s work as a major rewrite, although Watkins has said Flanagan’s core tragic arc for Matt Hagen remained the foundation. So Flanagan’s comments were less a public rebuke than a clarification. With the film now a Watkins-led production, and with the script revised after his departure, he was signaling that audiences should not assume the released body-horror experiment reflects his authorship in any full sense, even though he retains story and screenplay credit.

3 articles · Updated · Rotten Tomatoes · Oct 21

Early reviews cast Clayface as a divisive but distinctive DC entry, with critics praising its body-horror swing and Tom Rhys Harries’ lead performance while questioning the script, effects and broader appeal.
Tom Rhys Harries drew some of the strongest notices, and several critics said the film’s standalone, Halloween-timed approach gives the DC Universe a fresher texture than more conventional superhero releases.
Body horror is the movie’s clearest selling point: reviewers highlighted gruesome gore, prosthetics and unsettling set pieces, though some said the scares are limited and the visual effects blunt the impact.
The third theatrical DC Universe film follows Superman and Supergirl into theaters on October 23, with critics split on whether its small-scale originality signals a promising lane for future DC horror.