Warner Bros. and DC Studios are betting that a $44 million horror title can succeed where a $170 million superhero tentpole stumbled. Clayface is projected to open to $25 million–$30 million in North America from more than 3,400 theaters, with an additional $20 million–$25 million expected internationally.
Director James Watkins’ film stars Tom Rhys Harries as Matt Hagen, an actor whose face becomes disfigured and who turns to Naomi Ackie’s scientist for help. The production budget is the sharper talking point: it is roughly a quarter of Supergirl’s $170 million cost.
The DC slate’s third swing
Clayface is the third feature in the slate mapped by DC Studios bosses James Gunn and Peter Safran. Superman opened the film universe strongly last year; Supergirl sputtered over the summer, debuting to $37.1 million domestically and finishing with $126 million worldwide against that much larger budget.
Reviews are also moving in Clayface’s favour. It holds a 75 percent Rotten Tomatoes score, next to Supergirl’s 52. In The Hollywood Reporter, critic Frank Sheck called the film “a big swing that definitely pays off.”
A crowded frame
A24’s Elizabeth Holmes documentary You Can See Everything widens from 855 theaters to 2,600 after overperforming with a $15 million opening, good for second place behind Street Fighter. Directors Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim cover the disgraced Theranos founder’s life before her prison term.
Laika’s stop-motion Wildwood enters 2,926 theaters with a 100 percent Rotten Tomatoes score. Also debuting: Sony’s Klara and the Sun, starring Jenna Ortega and Amy Adams for director Taika Waititi; Amazon MGM Studios’ Ali G: Who Iz I?, a Sacha Baron Cohen comedy playing one week in theaters before Prime Video; and Black Bear’s Sundance standout Wicker, a romantic fantasy with Olivia Colman and Alexander Skarsgård.
What to watch
- Break-even math: a $44 million cost lowers the threshold for a profitable run.
- Second-weekend expansion: You Can See Everything tests whether documentary buzz extends beyond a limited launch.
- Legs vs. launch: with several newcomers in the frame, domestic holds and the overseas number will decide the narrative.
For planners, this reshapes the comparison: the health of the DC slate may be better read through cost multiples than raw opening numbers.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
