Defending his 'Clayface' movie, James Gunn says Hollywood isn’t where the public votes
James Gunn has a message for DC’s Clayface movie critics—and it’s aimed at how Hollywood weighs creative risks.
On Threads, a fan tossed James Gunn a familiar challenge — “Who asked for a Clayface movie? ” — and Gunn answered by rattling off a list of classics nobody “asked for” either. He argued the job isn’t to poll audiences on pre-sold ideas, it ’s to make something worth seeing. The exchange doubled as a window into how he’s steering DC: less obvious IP, more filmmaker-first bets.
“Who asked for Back to the Future? Casablanca? There’s Something About Mary? Pan’s Labyrinth? Fury Road? Weapons? The Matrix? Although it may seem like it, Hollywood isn’t a place where the only way to make a movie is the public voting on what IP they want to see that they’ve seen countless times before.”
Gunn also laid out how Clayface came together. He said the idea started with Mike Flanagan before director James Watkins and writer Hossein Amini further developed it — and that he’d rather back filmmakers who are genuinely lit up by a lesser-known character than grind out a lifeless script around a brand-name one. It tracks with his résumé: he turned the once-obscure Guardians of the Galaxy into a Marvel hit, and now he’s giving a Batman- adjacent horror figure the spotlight.
Who’s making the movie
Watkins is directing, with Flanagan and Amini credited as screenwriters. The film leans into body horror — a darker, transformation- driven take that puts a traditionally Batman-linked villain at the center.
- Tom Rhys Harries — Matt Hagen
- Naomi Ackie — supporting role
- Eddie Marsan — supporting role
- Max Minghella — supporting role
The push for Clayface comes as DC’s bigger-name titles are also in motion — Gunn’s Superman on the way and The Batman: Part II on Warner Bros. ’ calendar — underscoring how wide he wants the new DC universe to play, from marquee heroes to left-field genre swings.
Clayface is set to open October 23, 2026 .