Batman: Every Clayface, Ranked Worst To Best

Among the massive crop of Batman villains who debuted in The Dark Knights early days like The Joker, Catwoman, The Penguin, Hugo Strange, The Scarecrow, and Two-Face, Clayface tends to get lost in the shuffle. That said, he has more than made up for that in the decades since then.

The gimmick has been held by eight very different individuals in the comics, as well as two in related media. Now that the character has officially earned a comfortable spot in the halls of Arkham Asylum, it does raise a question worthy of The Riddler. Which Clayface is actually the greatest?

10 False Face

Given that the 1966 Batman series had a habit of creating their own bargain bin villains instead of using the ones from the comics, it may come as a surprise that False Face, who many have disregarded as a Clayface knock-off, actually debuted in the comics. Regardless, it’s obvious that False Face is supposed to fill the role of Clayface.

Played by Malachi Thorne, the character isn’t necessarily lame as much as he is a poor substitute for Clayface. Since the early Basil Karlo version of Clayface was more human around that time, it’s puzzling as to why they chose to go with False Face.

9 Doctor Peter Malley

Dubbed “Claything,” Dr. Peter Malley’s incarnation of the character is among the more forgettable tenures. When a skin sample of a former Clayface ends up bonding with a D.E.O. scientist, the resulting monstrosity goes on a rampage.

What really damages Peter Malley’s cred is that he only appeared in the 550th issue of Batman before being swiftly trounced by a character called Chase (yeah, not even Batman). Malley was remembered by no one and hasn’t been seen in the post-New 52 landscape whatsoever.

8 Todd Russell

What gives Todd Russell a bit of an edge on Peter Malley is that he is the enemy of a different Gotham hero. Unnamed in his first few appearances, Russell’s Clayface doesn’t battle Batman, instead finding himself pitted against Catwoman.

First appearing in the first issue of Catwoman Vol. 3, Russell would later be revealed to be a veteran who was experimented on. Though he and Catwoman didn’t see eye-to-eye in his first few appearances, he would later be freed by Catwoman when he was imprisoned at STAR Labs.

7 Matt Hagen

The Clayface forever remembered for an excellent run of acclaimed episodes in Batman: The Animated Series, it is unfortunate that Matt Hagen’s comic book cousin shares no such accolades. While Matt Hagen is well known in the comics for being the first shape-shifting, monstrous Clayface, that’s about all he’s known for.

Debuting in Detective Comics #298, there just really isn’t much more to the character other than Ron Perlman’s excellent performance in BTAS. The best Hagen ever got was being a plot device in “The Mud Pack,” but alas, that’s all she wrote.

6 Johnny Williams

Johnny Williams may be an obscure Clayface nowadays, but he played an important role in one of the biggest Batman stories in a long time. Introduced in Gotham Knights #60, Williams’ brief run as Clayface is best known for impersonating Jason Todd as part of Hush’s scheme in “Hush.”

Even though Williams’ performance was admirable, The Caped Crusader saw through it swiftly, as Jason always knew how much Batman loved him. These days, Williams is best known for playing an elaborate prank on Batman and for sharing a name with a beloved film composer.

5 Sondra Fuller

Known in many circles as “Lady Clay,” Sondra Fuller made her debut as Clayface in Outsiders #21. Voluntarily allowing the villain Kobra to turn her into Clayface because she despises her face, Fuller would probably be more famous if her motivation was stronger.

One of the more notable things Fuller did was join the Mud Pack formed by Basil Karlo, the first Clayface. It was in The Mud Pack that she would meet and fall in love with fellow Clayface Preston Payne, with the two even having a child together.

4 Cassius “Clay” Payne

In time, that child would become Clayface himself. Stepping into The DC Universe in Batman #550, Cassius “Clay” Payne was obviously christened such as a callback to the true name of iconic boxer Muhammed Ali, whose birth name was Cassius Clay.

Unlike most Clayfaces, who often have some tragic quality, Cassius was more often than not portrayed as far more sinister. Though Cassius hasn’t made an appearance recently, his criminal career is certainly a memorable one.

3 Preston Payne

Cassius’ father Preston Payne was a unique version of Clayface himself. First appearing in Detective Comics #477, Preston Payne was a scientist who suffered from Acromegaly similar to John Merrick but ended up developing the ability to shape-shift.

Alas, this comes at a cost, as he also developed an acidic touch which he must utilize to live, which he only discovered when he accidentally murdered his girlfriend. Out of all the different versions of Clayface, Preston Payne is one of the more sympathetic.

2 Ethan Bennett

Ethan Bennett’s Clayface is a special case as he only appeared in the underrated animated show The Batman. Bennett first appeared in the very first episode of The Batman as a GCPD detective and childhood friend of Bruce Wayne.

After being mutated by The Joker and suspended for defending Batman, Bennett becomes Clayface and attempts to murder the anti-Batman police chief Angel Rojas. After a somewhat brief criminal career, Bennett reformed and was cured, though Basil Karlo became Clayface in the very episode in which this happened.

1 Basil Karlo

The original Clayface, the current, more heroic Clayface, and still the best Clayface. Making his debut in Detective Comics #40 as a horror movie actor turned serial killer, Karlo, named after horror legends Boris Karloff and Basil Rathbone, would change a lot as the years went on, eventually gaining the classic monstrous form of his successors.

Karlo would be later retconned to be far younger, with a more varying degree of evil, to the point that he even joined forces with Batman in the pages of James Tynion IV’s Detective Comics. Though he’s a saint these days, Basil Karlo will forever be remembered for the days when he was a sinner.

About The Author

Seth Rector
(172 Articles Published)

Ever since he was a young lad, Seth Rector has had a love for all things that reek of geek. Movies, tv shows, comic books, and video games are what he considers his wheelhouse. A writer at heart, Seth says he’s over the moon now that he can write about what he loves. When he isn’t writing for Screen Rant, he is putting his film degree from Lights Film School to good use by working on future film projects.

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