Damien Leone’s horrifying Art the Clown is making a gory reappearance in the upcoming sequel Terrifier 2. In 2016, the first installment introduced mainstream horror to the sadistic clown portrayed by David Howard Thornton. The trailer dropped on July 28, 2020 and revealed what is in store for Art’s new victims as well as his reign of terror. Here is everything the trailer reveals about the highly anticipated sequel.
By the end of Terrifier, it is revealed that Art the Clown survived his own gunshot wound to the head, but where he went remains a mystery. Enter Terrifier 2 where, several years after the events of the first film, Art the Clown has gained a name for himself in local legends and Halloween tales of horror. Killer clowns are not uncommon for the horror genre, and have found recent success in major blockbusters such as Andy Muschietti's IT: Chapter One (2017) and IT: Chapter Two (2019). In fact, it appears that the clown creature in horror has grown increasingly popular the more it is adapted, created, and reinvented. There are even cult classics such as Killer Klowns From Outer Space (1988) that transformed the entertaining figure into an inter-galactic murderous alien.
What separates Art from Pennywise the Clown and others in the horror genre is the fact that he's a relentless and brutal character who seems to thrive off of nothing but murder. He resembles the clown from the dark comedy/slasher, Drive-Thru (2007), more than any other, but he is still his own unique villain. The first installment introduced his taste for human flesh, desire to don the skin and/or hair of his victims, and silent stalking nature. Most of all, his survival at the end of Terrifier and the existence of Terrifier 2 offers a new question for audiences: can Art be killed?
Everything The Trailer For Terrifier 2 Reveals
The trailer opens on siblings Sienna (Lauren LaVera) and Jonathan (Elliot Fullam) while he expresses that he is deeply afraid of the return of the killer clown that plagued their town several years prior. Sienna reassures him by stating that, if he were alive, which she does not believe he is, that he would not remain in the same town he was caught in. She does not realize just how wrong she is. Art is back to his old stomping grounds, but the main question on everyone's mind is how it is possible that he is alive and how did he not get caught. By the end of Terrifier, he killed a medical examiner, but the audience is unaware of where he went afterwards. Furthermore, Art the Clown's ability to resurrect himself with no signs of damage has yet to be explained.
Terrifier 2 does not bring to question the motives behind his killings; it appears as if his victims are simply in the wrong place at the right time. It primarily focuses on the fact that Art is not of this world and, if he is, what allows him to reanimate. The possibilities are endless when other immortal beings of the horror genre such as zombies and demons have similar capabilities to Terrifier's clown. This may mean that Art is living demon or he's a new hybrid zombie. Even if he is neither, the sequel appears to provide some semblance of an answer, according to the movie's trailer.
As the release date nears, speculation is at an all time high in regards to the biggest question that the trailer purposefully left out: how is Art the Clown alive? With a hopeful release of October 2020, Terrifier 2 will likely provide some clarity to what Art is while showcasing just how sadistic he can truly be.