DC's First Horror Movie Officially Breaks Franchise's Box Office Slump

Armed with positive word-of-mouth, DC's Clayface exceeded expectations in its box-office debut. Fans have often wondered what a (relatively) low-budget superhero movie would look like, and while Joker emerged as an anomaly, the industry has largely been reluctant to experiment with high-value properties. DC's own Supergirl movie tanked this summer with a $125 million worldwide haul against a reported budget of more than $185 million. The franchise began in 2025 with a Superman reboot directed by James Gunn — the movie made a solid $620 million globally against a reported budget of $225 million. A sequel, titled Man of Tomorrow, is slated for release in summer 2027. Clayface is a bold step toward creating standalone genre movies based on DC characters, with a Swamp Thing movie in the works from director James Mangold.

Clayface follows an actor from Gotham City who transforms into a vengeful anti-hero after he is assaulted by a gangster and undergoes an experimental medical procedure. Starring newcomer Tom Rhys Harries alongside Naomi Ackie, the movie earned a stellar A- grade on CinemaScore, matching the grade received by last year's Superman. This is not only an excellent result for a superhero title, but it's also something of an anomaly for a horror film. Clayface is now sitting at a "Certified Fresh" 75% critics' score and a "Verified Hot" 94% audience score on the aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, where the consensus reads, "Carving out a unique identity for itself in the DCU while closely resembling a litany of body horror classics, Clayface takes time to get going until it eventually morphs into an icky and satisfying revenge thriller."