With Clayface bringing R-rated body horror to the DCU, the stage has been set for DC Studios to explore some of Batman's most disturbing enemies in ways that aren't necessarily possible in a typical superhero movie. Given how keen James Gunn seems to be on developing projects about the Dark Knight's rogues' gallery, these might be the way to go while a shelved Batman continues gathering dust.
Alongside Clayface, DC Studios is developing the Deathstroke- and Bane-led Savage Hunters movie and a Poison Ivy TV series, adding to the growing list of stories focused on characters who have crossed paths with Batman.
While we wait for The Brave and the Bold, there are plenty of Gotham villains who could carry their own R-rated horror movies, exploring their tragic descents into madness before setting the stage for eventual appearances in the DCU.
From grotesque body horror to psychological terror, here are five Batman villains DC Studios should give the Clayface treatment...
5. Professor Pyg
Introduced by Grant Morrison, Andy Kubert, and Frank Quitely, Professor Pyg is a deranged surgeon obsessed with creating perfect human beings. His grotesque experiments transform victims into brainwashed servants known as Dollotrons, making Lazlo Valentin an ideal candidate for an R-rated body horror movie.
A DCU-set film could chart Valentin's descent from gifted medical professional to murderous fanatic, and his desire to create the "perfect" specimen would inevitably lead to those increasingly disturbing experiments. Rather than relying on Batman to investigate, the story could follow a survivor trying to escape his underground operating theatre, or even a Dollotron who regains their humanity.
By the finale, Pyg can be established as one of Gotham's most disturbing criminals, setting the stage for a future appearance in The Brave and the Bold.
4. Killer Croc
Killer Croc's comic book origins offer a tragic foundation for a creature-feature horror movie. Waylon Jones was born with reptilian features, and endures years of abuse and rejection before embracing the monstrous reputation society forces upon him.
An R-rated DCU movie could follow his physical transformation alongside his psychological deterioration, using practical effects to make his evolution increasingly unsettling. As Waylon's isolation turns to violence, we could see him retreat into Gotham's sewers, becoming an inhuman monster that lurks beneath Batman's home.
Still, rather than portraying Croc as an irredeemable monster, the film could ensure we're familiarised with Waylon's humanity before he tragically loses it. His eventual emergence as a feared figure beneath Gotham would establish Killer Croc as a future adversary for the DCU's Batman.
3. The Batman Who Laughs
Created by Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo, the Batman Who Laughs comes from an alternate Earth where Bruce Wayne kills the Joker, only to be transformed by a toxin that turns him into a twisted combination of the two enemies. Batman's intelligence remains intact, but his moral restraint vanishes.
Similar to the comics, a standalone Elseworlds movie could follow Bruce's gradual psychological collapse as he convinces himself he can control the toxin. As his attempts to protect Gotham become increasingly brutal, the story would transform into a nightmarish thriller about a hero losing himself to the very evil he vowed to destroy.
Unlike the other entries, this wouldn't need to connect to the DCU or The Brave and the Bold. However, it would require DC Studios to introduce Batman, which may be too big an ask for a studio that still hasn't done so nearly four years after being formed.
2. Man-Bat
Scientist Kirk Langstrom's experiments with bat biology were supposed to lead to a medical breakthrough, but his serum instead transformed him into the monstrous Man-Bat. First appearing in Detective Comics #400, the character is tailor-made for an R-rated creature feature.
A DCU-set movie could follow Langstrom as he tests his experimental treatment on himself, initially celebrating its success before terrifying mutations and violent episodes take control of his life. As his transformation accelerates, he'd become a nocturnal creature hunted by (and hunting) terrified Gotham residents, while desperately searching for a cure.
With practical effects, disturbing body horror, and a tragic central performance, the film could make Langstrom's loss of humanity as frightening as his monstrous appearance. His disappearance into Gotham's shadows would leave the door open for Batman to encounter the creature in The Brave and the Bold.
1. Scarecrow
Jonathan Crane's obsession with fear makes Scarecrow a natural choice for a psychological horror movie. The psychologist's experiments with fear-inducing toxins turn his academic fascination into something far more sinister, allowing DC Studios to explore horror that attacks the mind rather than the body.
The film could follow Crane as his research into phobias becomes increasingly unethical, culminating in an experiment that traps victims in a nightmare where hallucinations and reality become impossible to distinguish. Distinct from Professor Pyg's physical mutilations or Man-Bat's monstrous transformation, Scarecrow's horror would come from a vastly different place.
By the time Crane embraces his Scarecrow identity, Gotham will be his personal laboratory, and he'd be in Batman's crosshairs. Crucially, this would be DC Studios' opportunity to establish Crane as a truly terrifying threat to the Caped Crusader.