The first trailer for Clayface was certainly an electric debut for DC's body horror, but that hasn't shaken off one big question that remains unanswered: will Batman show up?
You don't have to look very far to see why.
Matt Hagen (played here by Tom Rhys Harries) is a prominent Batman villain, with another iteration of Clayface – in Batman: The Animated Series' seminal 'Feat of Clay' – also serving as a heavy influence for DC Studios' horror.
But even the trailer itself is filled with Batman-adjacent nods and references. There's Amusement Mile, a look at GCPD's finest, and the Narrows, each suggesting that Hagen's transformation will take place on the streets of Gotham. Whether a certain Caped Crusader is waiting in the wings, however, remains to be seen.
Previous Clayface set photos have also made sure to let us know it's deeply embedded in a world where Batman should be roaming around, including Easter eggs for Wayne Manor, ACE Chemicals, and the Iceberg Lounge.
It's certainly led to plenty of fans on Reddit speculating that The Dark Knight could have Clayface in his crosshairs by the movie's end, especially as we spy the villain's iconic clay-mace attack silhouetted on a Gotham street corner.
"It's just a great horror movie that is a great, smart, fun horror movie which is in a genre that I happen to love, which is body horror," Gunn said of the James Watkins-directed movie on the DC Studios Showcase podcast, as if you needed any more reason to be excited – Batman or no Batman.
Batman's role in the DCU hasn't yet been unveiled, however. The character showed up in Creature Commandos season 1 extremely briefly, though standalone movie The Brave and the Bold has not yet reached the development stage since it was first announced.
The Mike Flanagan-penned Clayface, also starring Naomi Ackie and David Dencik, hits cinemas on October 23.
For more, check out our guides on DCU Chapter One and upcoming DC movies.
