Liverpool landmarks as you’ve never seen them before in Hollywood blockbuster trailer

The Rise of the ‘Northern Gotham’: Why Hollywood is Flocking to the North West

The cinematic landscape is shifting, and the North West of England is becoming a primary canvas for some of the world’s biggest blockbusters. The recent production of the DC film Clayface highlights a growing trend: the “Gothamization” of cities like Liverpool, Manchester, and Stockport.

Rather than relying solely on soundstages, filmmakers are increasingly utilizing the architectural versatility of Northern English cities to create gritty, atmospheric metropolitan environments. From the transformation of Liverpool’s Philharmonic Hall into the fictional nightclub Vesuvius to the employ of The Plaza in Stockport as a Gotham landmark, the region’s unique aesthetic is perfectly suited for the dark, brooding tone of the DC Universe.

This trend isn’t just about aesthetics. it’s about the seamless blend of practical location filming and high-end digital effects. In the case of Clayface, the MV Royal Iris Mersey Ferry docking at the Seacombe Ferry terminal provided a real-world foundation, while the Wirral skyline was digitally replaced with the iconic CGI backdrop of Gotham.

Beyond the Cape: The Evolution of the Rated R Superhero Film

We are witnessing a pivot in how superhero narratives are delivered. The era of the “all-ages” blockbuster is expanding to craft room for more mature, genre-bending stories. Clayface represents this shift, arriving as a Rated R project—a move that suggests a more visceral and psychological approach to the DCU under the leadership of James Gunn.

Blending Horror and Heroics

The creative team behind Clayface signals a trend toward integrating horror elements into mainstream comic book cinema. By bringing in Mike Flanagan—known for the Netflix hit The Haunting of Hill House—and director James Watkins, who helmed Eden Lake and The Woman in Black, the film leans into the “body horror” aspect of the character’s physical transformation.

This approach transforms the superhero origin story into something more akin to a psychological thriller. The character of Matt Hagan, played by Tom Rhys Harries, embodies this trend, focusing on a “horrendous physical transformation” and a descent into madness, mirroring the character’s original 1940s debut in Detective Comics #40.

The Art of Urban Transformation: CGI and Practical Sets

The future of location filming lies in the hybrid model of “Practical-First, Digital-Second.” The production of Clayface demonstrates how filmmakers are using real-world landmarks to provide authentic textures that CGI cannot yet fully replicate.

By filming fairground scenes in New Brighton and utilizing vintage cars at Adventureland in Wirral, the production captures a level of organic detail that adds credibility to the film. The CGI then acts as a layer of “world-building” rather than a replacement for reality, allowing the film to maintain a gritty, grounded feel while still existing in a fantastical universe.

This strategy allows cities to attract more production investment, as seen with the repeated use of Liverpool for Gotham, previously utilized in the 2022 production of The Batman, although Clayface exists in a separate universe.

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