EXCLUSIVE: David Dencik says entering the DC Universe with Clayface was “quite a ride”; reveals how his eight-year-old son helped him explore the franchise
For David Dencik, stepping into the DC Universe was an opportunity to enter a world that was both exciting and, in some ways, unfamiliar. The actor, who plays Gotham underworld figure Markos Szabo, found the experience particularly rewarding thanks to the people involved in the project, his collaboration with director James Watkins and an unexpected source of preparation at home: his eight-year-old son.
Reflecting on his experience of working within the DC Universe Dencik described the production as an enjoyable and welcoming environment. Having collaborated with Watkins and executive producer Paul Ritchie before, the actor said he was able to approach the project with a degree of familiarity despite its place within a major comic-book franchise. “Stepping into the DC Universe has been quite a ride. It’s been great fun. There was a wonderful group of people working on the film. I’ve worked with James Watkins before, as well as [executive producer] Paul Ritchie and some of the other cast members. So that’s always comfortable. This felt like a very safe space to work in. It was also kind of new to me, to be honest. But thanks to my son—he’s eight—I started going deep into the DC Universe and watching some of the movies together with him to have a better understanding of it all. And I really enjoyed doing that,” Dencik said.
The actor’s admission offers a glimpse into how he familiarised himself with the larger world surrounding his character. Watching DC films with his son became a way to explore the franchise beyond the immediate demands of the role, allowing him to engage with its mythology while sharing the experience with his child.
Dencik also spoke enthusiastically about the film’s setting, particularly the transformation of Liverpool into Gotham City. Although he had previously visited Liverpool while working with Watkins on another show, seeing the city reimagined through the visual language of DC was an entirely different experience. “Oh, that was inspiring. I had been to Liverpool before, actually with James Watkins, on a previous show. But I had never seen Liverpool through the lens of the DC Universe, from that perspective. I thought that some of the locations they found were absolutely spectacular, and I understand why they wanted to go to Liverpool. It really did look like Gotham City… or rather, they made it into Gotham City. I’m not quite sure what’s the chicken and what’s that egg in that process. [laughs]” he said.
The comments underline the importance of the film’s locations in establishing Gotham’s atmosphere. Liverpool’s architecture and streets provided the production with a striking canvas, which the filmmakers then transformed into the fictional city’s distinctive world.
For Dencik, the combination of a welcoming creative team, the opportunity to explore a major cinematic universe and the discovery of Gotham through Liverpool made the experience memorable. His role as Szabo may place him on the darker side of the city, but the actor’s own journey into the DC Universe appears to have been an adventure he embraced wholeheartedly.
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