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Summary

  • Terrifier 3, the highly anticipated supernatural slasher-horror, will tie together Damien Leone's breakout horror trilogy, with David Howard Thornton reprising the role of Art The Clown.
  • Terrifier 3 is set to release on October 25, 2024, just over 2 years after Terrifier 2.
  • With the success of the previous film, Terrifier 3 has the potential to become a box office phenomenon.

Terrifier 3 is one of the most anticipated upcoming supernatural slasher-horrors, thanks in no small part to the breakout success of 2022's Terrifier 2, and there have already been plenty of terrifying updates. The Terrifier franchise has gradually gained a loyal following, with the bloodthirsty Art the Clown first appearing in the 2008 short film The 9th Circle. Art the Clown returned in the 2013 anthology All Hallow's Eve before finally getting his own movie in 2016's Terrifier. However, it was 2022's Terrifier 2 that introduced many to Art the Clown and Leone's twisted genius.

The upcoming Terrifier 3 will tie together Damien Leone's breakout horror trilogy, with David Howard Thornton reprising the role of Art The Clown. Terrifier 2 has not only become a surprise horror hit but also one of 2022's most relentlessly scary and violent horror movies, with many reports of Terrifier 2 causing moviegoers to faint. With that kind of impact and even horror movie infamy associated with Terrifier 2, the world has not seen the last of Art the Clown's sinister grin. Here is everything currently known about Art's return in Terrifier 3 and what it could entail.

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The First Movie Featuring Art The Clown Explained (It Wasn't Terrifier)
Art the Clown has become a horror icon and has his own horror series with Terrifier, but The 9th Circle short from 2008 was his first appearance.

Terrifier 3 Latest News

Damien Leone Offers A Filming Update

As the release date for the horrifying third film draws ever nearer, the latest news sees director Damien Leone offer a filming update on Terrifier 3. In a post on his official Instagram page, Leone revealed a candid BTS shot of Art the Clown as seen through his monitor. Though the image reveals next to nothing about the upcoming movie, it does prove that production is well underway on Leone's next blood-soaked opus.

Terrifier 3 Release Date

The Next Terrifier Movie Arrives In October 2024

Art the Clown stands behind Lauren LeVara at a bar in Terrifier 2

The Terrifier 3 release date is October 25, 2024. Leone started shooting Terrifier 3 at the end of 2023 and has shared some behind-the-scenes looks at Art the Clown before his return. This means the gap between Terrifier 2 and Terrifier 3 will be just over 2 years, which is a much shorter gap than the six years between 2016's Terrifier and 2022's Terrifier 2.

Terrifier 2 was a huge 2022 horror success, as it was initially released in just 886 theaters across North America, pulling in $805,000 in its opening weekend, already making it a box office success against the film's tiny $250,000 budget. Terrifier 2 then climbed to $1 million in its second weekend as word of mouth spread about the film, which continued throughout October 2022.

Having earned more than $15 million, Terrifier 2 has become a true hit, massively overperforming helping the franchise earn its reputation of frightening audiences. As a result, Terrifier 3 could become a true box office phenomenon when the October 2024 theatrical release date arrives.

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Why Terrifier 2’s Bedroom Scene Is So Controversial
The controversial scene has made many viewers feel queasy and even faint. It is certainly the most gruesome Art the Clown moment from Terrifier 2.

Terrifier 3 Cast

Who Is Returning For Terrifier 3?

Split image of Allie and Art covered in blood in Terrifier 2

TheTerrifier 3 cast will contain a few returning faces, although the full cast list hasn't been revealed by Damien Leone yet. Art the Clown will return in Terrifier 3, played once again by David Howard Thornton (The Mean One, Gotham). Lauren LaVera (The Well, Not For Nothing) is confirmed to return as Sienna (via Bloody Disgusting), and Elliot Fullam will also return as Jonathan.

Samantha Scaffidi (Sarah Q, American Fango) will be returning to the Terrifier 3 cast as Victoria Heyes, joining Thornton as the only returning cast member present in the entire trilogy. Amelie McLain will also likely be back as The Little Pale Girl, though this has yet to be confirmed.

The big question, of course, is whether Sienna's Dad, teased throughout Terrifier 2, will have a presence in Terrifier 3. If he does, there's been no casting news that indicates who could play him — although a male actor in an unspecified role could be a big hint about the plot Damien Leone doesn't want to give away just yet.

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Terrifier 2: Who Is Sienna's Dad & What's His Connection To Art The Clown?
Art the Clown in Damien Leone's Terrifier 2 may be linked to Sienna's father. Could this be the beginning of an origin story for the killer clown?

Terrifier 3 Story Details

What Will Happen In The Next Terrifier Movie?

A bloody Art leans against a wall in Terrifier 2

In Terrifier 2, the horror movie's ending sees Art the Clown brutally beheaded by Sienna, with his killing associate, credited as "The Little Pale Girl" (Amelie McLain) picking up Art's head and leaving with it. Later, Terrifier 2's end-credits scene shows the first Terrifier's surviving victim Victoria Heyes (Samantha Scaffidi) literally giving birth to Art's head in a mental institution. With Art's still living head grinning at the horrified nurse, even decapitation clearly is not enough to stop Art the Clown, and the supernatural return of the new horror movie icon is already set in motion for Terrifier 3.

Outside the sequel hints in Terrifier 2's ending, there have been very few details shared around the story beyond that it will take place during the Holiday period. Leone promised that Terrifier 3 will be the scariest movie yet, and that the franchise will turn to its roots, being more like the original short film. The director explained, "One of my main goals for Terrifier 3 is to recapture the creep factor present in the original Terrifier short film. That had a genuinely spooky atmosphere that I’m still proud of."

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Terrifier 2 Was Written to Include Teases for Terrifier 3
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Terrifier 3 Trailer

The First Teaser Trailer Was Released In November 2023

David Howard Thornton's Art the Clown covered in blood in Terrifier 2

Though the movie is still a ways away, Damien Leone and the rest of the Terrifier 3 crew released a creepy teaser trailer in November 2023. The snippet shows a happy-go-lucky child wandering downstairs on Christmas Eve in hopes of catching a glimpse of Santa Claus. Instead, the jolly old elf is Art the Clown and his blood-splattered visage clearly isn't Saint Nick. The trailer indicates that Terrifier 3 will go to any length to shock, and even young children aren't safe from Art's spree. The teaser also showed off the film's sense of humor, as Santa Art was shown snacking on milk and cookies.