Tom Rhys Harries cast as Clayface and Matt Hagen in DC's opening Gods and Monsters film

Tom Rhys Harries will play Clayface and the character's alter-ego Matt Hagen in Clayface, which the Sydney Morning Herald presents as the opening chapter of DC's new "Gods and Monsters" film slate. The Herald says director James Watkins adapted the Clayface story and frames the casting as part of the creative direction being set by James Gunn and Peter Safran at DC.

Warner Bros Pictures is named in the article as associated with the film's production or release. Harries, whom the Herald identifies as 36 years old, described his Clayface as morally ambiguous and emphasised the dual casting of the role and its actor alter-ego, Matt Hagen.

The Herald's feature places the film's creative DNA in conversation with early movie monsters and silent-era cinema, citing influences such as Lon Chaney's Phantom of the Opera and Boris Karloff's Frankenstein as part of the project's lineage.

The Herald quotes Harries on the professional and aesthetic stakes of the role, saying that Matt Hagen's face is "circumstantially important" to his profession and noting his sense of privilege in bringing that lineage to live action. That comment is presented in the Herald's article as Harries's own view of the character's vanity and its narrative relevance.

A set of headlines supplied alongside the Herald article corroborate and extend certain details the Herald did not elaborate: a Facebook headline quotes James Gunn discussing alignment with Matt Reeves and DC Studios on Harries for the part; an AOL headline records Harries teasing "We have footage" and linking the film to major Batman footage; a JoBlo headline reports first reactions praising Harries's performance and the film's body-horror elements; and a Yahoo headline repeats Harries's line about footage implying Matt Hagen knows Batman is in Gotham during the movie.

Those headlines are cited only for the facts their own texts state. The available reporting focuses on casting, creative leadership and the project's aesthetic aims rather than on production schedule, release date, other cast members, or plot specifics beyond the character's dual identity and its thematic roots.

The Herald's piece anchors Clayface within James Gunn and Peter Safran's broader plan for DC as presented in that article, and the ancillary headlines signal audience and industry interest in the role and selected footage.

What is documented by the available sources is confined to casting, creative attribution and Harries's own comments about the character's moral ambiguity and cinematic lineage. No independent confirmation of plot details beyond those comments and the headlines' short claims about footage is provided in the article text supplied.