Horror movies are widely known for their performances and impact on people who cannot take being scared easily. The most notable aspect of horror films is the villain the surviving characters face and defeat in order to survive.
There have been so many famous examples of villains in horror movies, ranging from a slasher like Jason Voorhees of the Friday the 13th franchise to an alien monster in John Carpenter’s “The Thing” (1982). These villains are horrifying and have become staples of the horror genre.
If someone showed a picture of Michael Myers to a random person, there’s a good chance they would know who he is even if they have not seen any of the Halloween films. These characters have become so iconic that dressing up as them every Halloween never feels stale or outdated.
The few examples mentioned are from movies from nearly half a century ago, but one villain is becoming increasingly popular: David Howard Thornton’s Art the Clown from the Terrifier series.
Art the Clown’s first appearance was in the movie “The 9th Circle” (2008) directed by Damien Leone. Mike Gianelli played the character, and this is the first of two times he played Art the Clown, with the second being in Leone’s “All Hallow’s Eve” (2013).
Thornton later recast Gianelli because he retired from acting shortly before the production of “Terrifier” (2016). Since then, Thornton has played Art the Clown three times: in the original 2016 film, in the higher-budget “Terrifer 2” (2022) and in the Christmas-themed “Terrifier 3” (2024).
Leone stated in an interview with Entertainment Weekly that the character’s creation came from a nightmare he had many years ago.
“I had this idea of a clown terrorizing a woman on a city bus,” Leone said. “She's all alone, coming home from work or whatever, in the middle of the night, and then this clown gets on, and sits across from her, and starts staring at her and toying with her. It's awkward and uncomfortable, and maybe even funny, but then it gets progressively more intimidating and aggressive.”
The “Terrifier” movies are infamous for their excessive gore, kills and violence by Art the Clown. According to an interview conducted by Dexerto, Leone wanted Art the Clown to be different from Pennywise, another popular and scary killer clown from the It movies.
“I want him to go in the complete opposite direction of Pennywise,” Leone said. “So that’s why Art’s not colorful, he doesn’t speak.”
Art the Clown’s motive for killing is never explicitly explained in any of the films, making him a far scarier antagonist than other villains with a motive. Art the Clown is simply murdering people for the fun of it.
Thornton, the man behind the mask, does a terrific job playing Art the Clown. Despite not speaking, the audience knows what Art is thinking at every moment in all three films through Thornton’s incredible facial expressions.
Thornton also plays around a bit in “Art mode.” In some of the films, there are instances where Thornton was given the range to improvise and do what he thought a sadistic supernatural killer clown would do. The final result is an unnerving performance and horror villain that will be in viewers’ minds for a long time.
Art the Clown is the most well-known horror antagonist since Wes Craven’s Ghostface in the original “Scream” (1996). For those interested in seeing the Terrifier films, brace yourself because Art the Clown is not here to play games.
