The fourth (and supposedly final) movie in the bloody slasher franchise Terrifier is officially in development and now director Damien Leone has revealed some more insights into what fans can expect from Art the Clown's next maniacal rampage.
Leone recently attended the Texas Frightmare Weekend (via Collider) and revealed that Art's backstory will be revealed "in the first 15 minutes" of Terrifier 4, while also promising that the fourth entry will not disappoint and be suitably "epic." Those are big promises to make, let's hope Terrifier 4 can live up to its lofty expectations.
Introduced in the horror short The 9th Circle back in 2008, Art the Clown has gone on to cement his place in the world of iconic slashers. The murderous clown has been played by two actors, starting with Mike Giannelli. David Howard Thornton took over the role in 2016, introducing Art to the masses in the first feature-length film Terrifier. Thornton has played the character ever since.
But despite being around for more than a decade now, Art's backstory is still very much shrouded in mystery. All we really know about him is that he's a psychotic mass murderer who enjoys torturing his victims. He also displays superhuman abilities and is likely possessed by a demon. Much of his lore is left up to interpretation.
Art usually appears on Halloween (or in the case of Terrifier 3, Christmas) to wreak havoc and kill more people. He has died in the past, but then The Little Pale Girl, another demonic enigma in the Terrifier universe, resurrected the clown. The only person who is an actual threat to Art is Sienna Shaw (Lauren LaVera). Sienna manages to behead Art in Terrifier 2, though he returns to life later. She almost kills him again in Terrifier 3 before he escapes through a portal, taking Sienna's beloved cousin Gabbie (Antonella Rose) with him.
The fourth movie is set-up to create the ultimate showdown between Art and Sienna, where only one is likely to emerge victorious. Leone previously teased that the next film will have a truly "nasty, horrifying, emotional and utterly satisfying conclusion."
Based on his previous comments, it seemed like Terrifier 4 would save Art's backstory for a mid-film reveal, but his latest quote suggests otherwise. We'll finally know the truth about the clown within the opening act of the next movie.
At one point, Leone had said he was considering making a fourth and a fifth Terrifier. However, now it seems like the filmmaker is prepared to make Terrifier 4 the grand finale and if it's as epic as he claims, then I'm sure fans will be thrilled.