Batman has faced a lot of villains across the more than eighty years since his debut in Detective Comics #27. From the Joker to the Calendar Man, Batman has a rogue gallery that entices readers and viewers. One of the more cult classic villains is the shapeshifting mastermind known as Clayface.
Clayface has become famous in recent decades due to his appearance in Batman: The Animated Series as well as his inclusion in the Batman: Arkham series. There is a lot to learn about this villain that even hardcore fans of the mythos might not know about.
One Of The Earliest Batman Villains
Clayface didn't become a popular villain until his resurgence in the 1990s but he's actually been around in the comics for a long time. He's one of the villains created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger in 1940, only a few months after the debut of The Joker.
Despite being such a long-lasting villain, he's one of several iconic villains that haven't yet appeared in a Batman movie. Clayface has, however, made numerous appearances in animated movies, shows, and even video games, and even features as a recurring character on the Harley Quinn animated series.
Inspired By Classic Horror Actor
Originally, Clayface's true name was Basil Karlo, an actor who was the star of famous horror films before he fell into madness and began killing the cast and crew of a remake of one of his classic films.
The name, Basil Karlo, was clearly inspired by Boris Karloff who most might know as the Monster in the Universal Frankenstein films. Both Boris Karloff and Basil Karlo starred in a film called The Terror. Clayface is one of many comic book characters inspired by famous movie monsters.
Clayface Wasn't Always A Monster
These days, Clayface's definitive appearance is that of a blob made of the clay-like substance that allowed him to change his face. He has the ability to shapeshift into anyone he wants, form weapons, and stretch in any way shape, or form. However, that was not the case for the original Clayface of the Golden Age.
Basil Karlo became nothing more than a deranged killer, dressing up as the Clayface character that he played in the past. It was actually Matt Hagen who was the first Clayface to become a monster made of clay.
There Have Been Multiple Clayfaces
Matt Hagen was the second Clayface but there are many more to don the title. This resulted in Basil Karlo creating a club of all of the Clayfaces known as The Mud Pack. It consisted of Basil, Matt, Sondra Fuller, and Preston Payne.
Basil's Clayface was still a normal human until Batman defeated The Mud Pack which made Basil resort to injecting himself with the blood of his teammates. As a result, he transformed into the monstrous Clayface that fans have come to know him as.
Married Poison Ivy
Sadly for Clayface, this union was not a good one. Clayface marries Poison Ivy and he feels like he's on top of the world but it turns out to be a cruel ploy by the famous female Batman villain. He never loved Ivy nor was he actually ever married, Ivy simply seeded him with a plant that has a hallucinogen for nectar.
Batman tried to get Clayface out of his mind-controlled state but to no avail. Instead, Ivy kept control only long enough to fool Clayface into waiting at a certain location. Ivy never comes and a heartbroken Clayface ends up rebelling against her.
Worked For Jason Todd
In the Batman: Hush storyline, the return of Jason Todd, AKA The Second Robin, is teased via the appearance of Hush removing his bandages to reveal Jason underneath. However, the beginning of the encounter was actually Jason Todd. It was revealed in Batman: Under The Red Hood that Jason quickly swapped places with Clayface just to mess with Bruce.
This reveals that Clayface has known who Batman is for a rather long time. However, it's also with this little act in Hush that Batman was not impressed with Clayface's acting, defeating the monster on his own.
The Animated Series Influenced The Comics
In one of the most beloved episodes of Batman: The Animated Series, Matt Hagen is an actor who performs illegal tasks for Roland Daggett. To pull the jobs off and to keep his face normal, he uses an experimental cream that turns his face malleable.
An overdose of that formula is what transforms him into the blob monster known as Clayface. When Scott Snyder rebooted Clayface for the New 52 era, he took the concept of Matt Hagen but gave it to the classic Basil Karlo. This is yet another example of the animated series permanently influencing DC's future.
He Became A Superhero
In a very rare example of a villain actually reforming into hero, Clayface actually joined Batman. It wasn't Clayface being forced into it or trying to lie so he can get out of Arkham Asylum, it was an actual reform. With Batman and Batwoman as the leaders, they formed a new team of heroes to protect Gotham City.
This included Cassandra Cain (AKA Orphan), Tim Drake (AKA Robin), Stephanie Brown (AKA Spoiler), and, yes, Basil Karlo (AKA Clayface). It was an interesting change for Clayface that shows the potential of how good for Gotham some of the other Batman villains could have been.
Potential Solo Movie
While promoting his horror project Midnight Mass, director Mike Flanagan revealed that he pitched an idea to Warner Bros. executives: a Clayface movie. In a similar vein as the 2019 Joker movie, it would be a dark psychological horror about an actor who slowly transforms into a monster.
Many fans were behind the director's idea but there have been no official announcements. Mike Flanagan is no newcomer to horror either having been behind praised films and shows such as Doctor Sleep, The Haunting Of Hill House, and Hush.