Over the past few months, Warner Bros. has been accelerating the production of a film centered around the Batman villain Clayface. Following recent speculation about the search for a director, the studio has now announced its selection: James Watkins, known for his work on Eden Lake and the 2024 Speak No Evil remake.

According to a report by the Hollywood Reporter, Watkins successfully presented his vision to James Gunn and will now be at the helm of the film, which features a script written by renowned horror writer-director Mike Flanagan. As per the report, the movie is expected to have a budget of $40 million and is likely to begin filming later this year. The actor who will portray Clayface—a fading actor who gains shapeshifting abilities after injecting himself with a mysterious substance (not this particular one)—will also be expected to play the character in non-live-action formats, in line with Gunn’s directive for the entire DC movie slate.

Clayface will be the first Batman villain, who isn’t a chaotic murder clown, to star in a solo movie. The character regularly appears in various forms of media beyond comics: he has been featured in animated series such as Batman: The Animated Series, The Batman (as both Basil Karlo and the original character Ethan Bennett), and Batman: Caped Crusader. He has also made appearances in the Lego Batman video games and has been portrayed in live-action in Gotham and Pennyworth, where the character was reimagined as a woman. More recently, Alan Tudyk voiced the villain in his brief appearance in Creature Commandos and also voices the character in Harley Quinn. (Incidentally, Nickelback frontman Chad Kroeger voiced Clayface in the Batwheels cartoon, a fact that might come as a surprise to some.)

James Watkins’ Clayface film is scheduled to hit theaters on September 11, 2026.

For more io9 news, check out the anticipated release dates for upcoming Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek projects. Also, find out what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and get all the details on the future of Doctor Who.