James Gunn’s Gotham City Confirms The DCU’s Batman Will Learn From The Best

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As a huge DC fan, I’m really excited about how James Gunn is building the new DCU. Even though Batman himself isn’t confirmed yet, Gotham City is definitely coming to life, and it feels like they’re pulling from some of the greatest Batman stories. We’ll be seeing a lot of Gotham in 2026 with the Clayface movie, which is awesome because it focuses on a classic Batman villain we’ve already gotten a glimpse of in the DCU!

As a huge DC fan, I’m really excited about the upcoming Clayface movie! You might remember Clayface popping up in Creature Commandos, but this film is going to dive deep into his origin story – how he became the terrifying shapeshifter we know. Originally, Mike Flanagan – the brilliant mind behind so many great horror projects – was writing the script. Sadly, scheduling conflicts meant he couldn’t direct, but thankfully, the core of his vision is still very much present in the final product.

Clayface’s Gotham City Is Inspired By Batman: The Animated Series

Image via Max

I was really fascinated to hear Mike Flanagan talk about his original Clayface script at Motor City Comic Con. He shared that the look and feel of the city in his story, and really the whole concept around Clayface, was heavily inspired by the incredible 1990s Batman: The Animated Series. It’s cool to know that show had such a direct impact on his vision!

He highlighted the two-part Clayface adventure, featuring a voice performance by Ron Perlman. This gives us a good idea of how the DCU will portray the villain and the city he lives in. Because this story is part of the main DCU timeline, it also reveals a lot about the version of Batman we’ll see.

Batman: The Animated Series Is Still The Benchmark For Most Batman Characters

©Warner Bros./courtesy MovieStillsDB

Batman has been adapted for television and film countless times, but many fans consider Batman: The Animated Series to be one of the very best versions of his story.

As a film and TV lover, I was really surprised by this show. Even though it’s aimed at kids, it tackled some surprisingly complex and meaningful stories. What I appreciated most was how it handled those heavier themes – it didn’t talk down to its audience, but instead presented them with sensitivity and respect. It wasn’t afraid to go a little deeper, and that really resonated with me.

The show really captured the depth of Batman as he’s known in the comics. It didn’t portray him as simply dark and serious, or just lighthearted and silly. Instead, it showed a character who was a blend of both, able to change and fit whatever situation he was in.

What Else The DCU’s Batman Can Learn From The Animated Series

Since Gotham City’s animated series offered a rich and engaging story for Batman’s allies, James Gunn should consider drawing more inspiration from it when he develops a new Batman movie.

Live-action Batman films have successfully portrayed certain key elements of the character – like the idea that Bruce Wayne is the facade, not Batman, as shown in The Dark Knight trilogy, or the detective side explored in The Batman. However, Batman: The Animated Series truly excelled at balancing all these different facets of the character.

If the DC Universe’s Batman is portrayed with depth and complexity, allowing viewers to see all facets of his character, I believe they could finally create a live-action version that lives up to the quality of the best animated interpretations.

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2025-11-18 00:42