CLAYFACE Reportedly Undergoing Page 1 Rewrite – Is James Gunn's DCU Already Crumbling?
Things aren’t looking too solid over at DC Studios right now. First, Sgt. Rock has bit the dust, and now Clayface, one of the more intresting entries in James Gunn’s DCU is reportedly headed back to square one. If this is the start of a pattern, fans have every right to be nervous.Back in February, horror director James Watkins (Eden Lake, Speak No Evil) was tapped to bring Clayface to life, from a script written by Mike Flanagan. With these two talents working on the film, expectations have been high!But, according to industry insider Jeff Sneider, the project may not be as far along as we hoped. He revealed that “Mike Flanagan only wrote a 'skeleton' script for the movie,” noting that Flanagan's attention has now shifted to his Carrie TV series. That means Clayface is reportedly undergoing a full "Page 1 rewrite", which is industry speak for “start over from scratch.”This is surprising concidering Gunn’s previously comments one why he ultimately greenlit the film. He said:“As I say all the time, everything here is about, ‘I want to make sure we have the screenplay that works perfectly.’ That goes above and beyond anything else. “So when Mike Flanagan comes in and he is like, ‘I got this idea for Clayface…’ I didn't think about, ‘We're going to do something with Clayface.’ But then he told me this idea he had, and the idea was so amazing. “And I'm like, ‘Well, let's take a shot. Let's go write it!’ So he writes it, and he comes in with this amazing script. He was so passionate about it that I'm like, ‘That definitely could fit in.’ “It's just quality above everything. Then we have to figure out, ‘How does that fit in with everything else?’”So, it sounds to me like there was a full script written and ready to go. So either Gunn is lying, which he says he doesn’t, or Sneider’s information is way off. Sneider also dropped new details about the canceled Sgt. Rock project. Turns out, the film was scraped due to the budget. Luca Guadagnino initially had $70 million to work with, but after it was slashed to $65 million, the creative compromises were apparently too great. Even Daniel Craig, who was initially attached, backed out, and the studio tried to pivot to Colin Farrell. Still, it wasn’t enough to keep it afloat.This all raises questions about the leadership at DC Studios. James Gunn and Peter Safran have made some bold choices since taking over, but running a studio is a very different game from directing and producing. With Superman landing in theaters this summer, and truly launching the DCU, the pressure is mounting.Even behind the scenes, there may be some internal tension. Sneider hinted that Gunn was frustrated with HBO’s reluctance to greenlight superhero content. Supposedly, Gunn even bypassed HBO boss Casey Bloys and went straight to Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav to push Lanterns into development.It’s all starting to feel a bit too familiar. Back in 2014, Warner Bros. rolled out an ambitious DC slate filled with titles that never materialized. Now, with only a few of the projects announced in 2023 moving forward, we’re once again in a holding pattern, big plans, but little to show.Still, if Gunn’s past enthusiasm for Clayface holds, there may be reason to hope:“One of the things Peter and I talked about when we first got the script is if we were producing movies five years ago, like when we were doing Belko Experiment and all of that stuff, and somebody had brought us this horror script called Clayface about this guy, we would have died to have produced this movie.”“Because it was just a really excellent body horror script. And the fact that it's in the DCU is just a plus. Then we have Clayface: pure [frick]ing horror. Like totally real. Their version of that movie, it is so real and true and psychological and body horror and gross. It's definitely R-rated.”The concept is awesome, but in the chaotic world of Hollywood, even awesome film project can get tossed into development hell. Clayface is still technically slated for September 11, 2026, but if this news is true, don’t be surprised if that date shifts. The bigger question is whether the DCU can steady itself before audiences lose faith… again.What’s your take—should fans be worried? Or is this just part of building a better universe?
Things aren’t looking too solid over at DC Studios right now. First, Sgt. Rock has bit the dust, and now Clayface, one of the more intresting entries in James Gunn’s DCU is reportedly headed back to square one. If this is the start of a pattern, fans have every right to be nervous.
Back in February, horror director James Watkins (Eden Lake, Speak No Evil) was tapped to bring Clayface to life, from a script written by Mike Flanagan. With these two talents working on the film, expectations have been high!
But, according to industry insider Jeff Sneider, the project may not be as far along as we hoped. He revealed that “Mike Flanagan only wrote a 'skeleton' script for the movie,” noting that Flanagan's attention has now shifted to his Carrie TV series.
That means Clayface is reportedly undergoing a full "Page 1 rewrite", which is industry speak for “start over from scratch.”
This is surprising concidering Gunn’s previously comments one why he ultimately greenlit the film. He said:
“As I say all the time, everything here is about, ‘I want to make sure we have the screenplay that works perfectly.’ That goes above and beyond anything else.
“So when Mike Flanagan comes in and he is like, ‘I got this idea for Clayface…’ I didn't think about, ‘We're going to do something with Clayface.’ But then he told me this idea he had, and the idea was so amazing.
“And I'm like, ‘Well, let's take a shot. Let's go write it!’ So he writes it, and he comes in with this amazing script. He was so passionate about it that I'm like, ‘That definitely could fit in.’
“It's just quality above everything. Then we have to figure out, ‘How does that fit in with everything else?’”
So, it sounds to me like there was a full script written and ready to go. So either Gunn is lying, which he says he doesn’t, or Sneider’s information is way off.
Sneider also dropped new details about the canceled Sgt. Rock project. Turns out, the film was scraped due to the budget.
Luca Guadagnino initially had $70 million to work with, but after it was slashed to $65 million, the creative compromises were apparently too great. Even Daniel Craig, who was initially attached, backed out, and the studio tried to pivot to Colin Farrell. Still, it wasn’t enough to keep it afloat.
This all raises questions about the leadership at DC Studios. James Gunn and Peter Safran have made some bold choices since taking over, but running a studio is a very different game from directing and producing.
With Superman landing in theaters this summer, and truly launching the DCU, the pressure is mounting.
Even behind the scenes, there may be some internal tension. Sneider hinted that Gunn was frustrated with HBO’s reluctance to greenlight superhero content.
Supposedly, Gunn even bypassed HBO boss Casey Bloys and went straight to Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav to push Lanterns into development.
It’s all starting to feel a bit too familiar. Back in 2014, Warner Bros. rolled out an ambitious DC slate filled with titles that never materialized. Now, with only a few of the projects announced in 2023 moving forward, we’re once again in a holding pattern, big plans, but little to show.
Still, if Gunn’s past enthusiasm for Clayface holds, there may be reason to hope:
“One of the things Peter and I talked about when we first got the script is if we were producing movies five years ago, like when we were doing Belko Experiment and all of that stuff, and somebody had brought us this horror script called Clayface about this guy, we would have died to have produced this movie.”
“Because it was just a really excellent body horror script. And the fact that it's in the DCU is just a plus. Then we have Clayface: pure [frick]ing horror. Like totally real. Their version of that movie, it is so real and true and psychological and body horror and gross. It's definitely R-rated.”
The concept is awesome, but in the chaotic world of Hollywood, even awesome film project can get tossed into development hell. Clayface is still technically slated for September 11, 2026, but if this news is true, don’t be surprised if that date shifts. T
he bigger question is whether the DCU can steady itself before audiences lose faith… again.
What’s your take—should fans be worried? Or is this just part of building a better universe?
