Max Minghella, best known for his Emmy-nominated turn as Nick Blaine in The Handmaid’s Tale, is set to join the cast of Clayface, the upcoming DC Studios horror feature. The project is slated for a September 11, 2026 release.

The Industry star, who recently wrapped its fourth season and saw his psychological thriller Shell debut at the Toronto International Film Festival, will play a Gotham City police detective romantically involved with a scientist at the centre of the story.

Directed by Speak No Evil filmmaker James Watkins and based on a script by Mike Flanagan, Clayface reimagines the Batman villain in a body-horror setting. The film draws inspiration from David Cronenberg’s The Fly (1986), known for blending grotesque transformation with an emotionally tragic core.

Tom Rhys Harries takes on the lead role as a rising actor whose face is brutally disfigured by a gangster. Desperate, he seeks help from a maverick scientist, played by Naomi Ackie, whose methods are as controversial as they are unconventional.

Clayface will mark one of the earliest original character entries under James Gunn and Peter Safran’s DC Studios leadership, even ahead of more established names like Wonder Woman. The project will be produced by The Batman filmmaker Matt Reeves, along with Gunn, Safran, and Lynn Harris. With a mid-$40 million budget, production is set to begin this fall in the UK.