As Warner Bros. looks ahead to 2026, two DC projects from James Gunn are already being treated as red flags inside the industry: Supergirl and Clayface.
Warner Bros.’ expectations for Supergirl and Clayface appear notably muted, as both DC films made Puck News‘ list of red flags for Warner Bros. in 2026, with Supergirl even cited as “lower budget”:
- Supergirl (June 26)—Lower-budget DC with Milly Alcock starring.
- Clayface (September 11)—R-rated DC villain horror movie.
As Matthew Belloni writes in Puck News, the studio’s 2026 success won’t be measured by how either DC film performs at the box office:
“Warners’ upcoming year will be defined not by whether Supergirl or Clayface do either $300 million or $500 million, but if Fennell, Iñárritu/Cruise, Maggie Gyllenhaal, or even Denis Villeneuve (in a franchise he made cool) can deliver something that breaks through. Or so hope Mike and Pam.”
Warner Bros Doesn’t View Supergirl Or Clayface As Priority Films
Belloni’s framing is telling. Instead of positioning Supergirl or Clayface as major tentpoles, Puck suggests they’re essentially filler — lower-budget stake bets that won’t define the studio’s year one way or the other. In short, they don’t matter.
That’s not how studios talk about movies they believe in.
If Warner Bros. truly thought Supergirl was a breakout hit or a cornerstone of the DCU, it would be central to the 2026 narrative. Instead, it’s treated as background noise.
Supergirl Already Surrounded By Warning Signs
That skepticism lines up with everything else surrounding Supergirl so far, which includes heavy backlash to the trailer, poor test screening chatter, weak international interest, especially in China, and further comparisons to Gunn’s Superman, which underperformed overseas.
Now Puck is essentially confirming what many fans already suspect: Warner Bros. isn’t counting on this movie to move the needle.
Clayface Faces The Same Low-Expectation Problem
Clayface doesn’t fare any better in Puck’s analysis.
Despite being an R-rated DC villain film, it’s lumped into the same category — not a disaster waiting to happen, but not something Warner Bros. expects to matter financially.
DCU Movies Are Getting A Pass Because Expectations Are Low
One of the most striking parts of Belloni’s piece is how openly DC is being given a pass.
The bar is so low after recent failures that simply not collapsing is treated as success:
“So DC is getting a bit of a pass because expectations were so low, and Marvel whiffed worse this year with three films—Captain America: Brave New World, Thunderbolts, and Fantastic Four: First Steps—that each grossed far less than Superman.”
But low expectations don’t fix the core problem: audiences, especially international ones, aren’t responding to Gunn’s DCU the way they did to the SnyderVerse. Puck specifically mentions Snyder’s Man of Steel:
“Their Superman worked well enough to please fans and enable future DC movies in this universe, but its worldwide gross was less than the $670 million for Man of Steel in 2013 (about $930 million in today’s dollars).”
Another DCU Year Without Momentum?
When a major industry voice like Puck News is already downplaying Supergirl and Clayface a year out, it signals something deeper than fan backlash.
It suggests Warner Bros. itself doesn’t believe these films are strong enough to carry the brand — or the box office.
And that’s a bad place for the DCU to be heading into 2026.
