Christmas time is here. Stockings are hung by the chimney with care. And there’s a killer clown inside your house. Not really, but the new Terrifier 3 teaser will certainly make you feel that way, even if we’re a month early.

The Terrifier 3 Teaser Shows Us How Art Celebrates Christmas

After months of relative promotional silence, a limited re-release of Terrifier 2 in theatres across America on November 1st gave us a sneak peek of director Damien Leone’s next big film. That teaser trailer is now available to watch online here: 

Terrifier 3’s trailer shows a young girl waking up in the house during Christmas. The dark wood interior and nostalgic on-film feel is reminiscent of Black Christmas’s past (not you, 2019) and may be one of the coziest sights imaginable. As she heads downstairs on a snowy night, she sees a jolly fellow in all red crouched by the gifts under the tree. And who else could it be but our main man in white mime makeup? That’s right: Art the Clown is Santa, and that axe he lifts as he grins a rotten smile says he’s a mean one. 

Also available for your viewing pleasure is a nasty new official poster to complement the trailer, hinting at where he got his new costume:

Terrifier 3 Will See the Return of Some Familiar Faces

This hints at a fun wintertime spectacle for the demented and demonic clown. The returning cast of Terrifier 2 has been confirmed, headed by Lauren LaVera as beloved final girl Sienna Shaw, and Elliott Fullam as her younger brother Johnathan. And of course, David Howard Thorton is back as everyone’s favorite killer clown, because who else could play him like that? When we last saw them, Sienna had escaped death and decapitated Art to save her brother, but the clownish cohort known as The Little Pale Girl ended up rescuing his head and escaping into the night. 

He was later reborn by a maniacal Victoria Heyes, his disfigured victim from the first film, who has seemingly allied herself with her captor. Victoria’s actress Samantha Scaffidi is set to reprise the role as well. It seems this holiday season, Sienna and Art will be having another knockout, drag-down fight to the death, with some new friends in tow. 

(That being said, I say if Leah Voysey does not return as the Clown Café host and we don’t get an Art-themed Christmas song, we should riot.)

Since its initial run-in theatres, Terrifier 2’s home release has seen quite a bit of love, and the cast and crew’s horror convention appearances are often supported by a flood of posts; needless to say, Leone’s work has become a new staple of the genre and skyrocketed from its humble origins in the anthology film All Hallows Eve. 

Will Art the Clown Go Too Far?

Still, the film’s envelope-pushing tendencies, being as violent and explosive with its effects as it is, did spark a conversation about the nature of putting children in the crosshairs of slasher villains. Earlier last week, several Twitter users brought up concerns about the teaser, with one saying the films have “no purpose other than being gory” and fearing that the child’s implied death would be crossing a line.

The tweet saw much backlash from fans who saw it as derisive of the films. Producer Steve Barton (@UncleCreepy) took to the replies to give his take on the trailer’s ending, with a much more hopeful outlook on the child’s encounter with Art: 

Leone’s response to the comments made was humorous, deciding to take some time to promote the film in a tweet: 

Of the sequels’ numbers at the box office and wide acclaim, Leone said that “Terrifier 2’s remarkable success was driven not only by the insatiable appetite for new and thrilling horror icons like Art the Clown but also by its unparalleled theatrical release and marketing, along with its unyielding spirit.” In an interview with ScreenRant, he also discussed shutting down offers from other major studios to finance the third film, citing concerns about his style and the content of the film being stifled:   

“The first like 5 minutes of this movie, a studio would never let me film what I plan on filming. So, mark my words, I guarantee you the first 5 minutes of this movie is going to be very controversial. But that’s not even the big kill scene. So, like that’s why I was like, I need to just make this movie on my own […] it’s too insane.”

Leone’s earlier comments on his goals with the Terrifier franchise seem prescient in the wake of the talk: “In a cinematic landscape where risk-taking is scarce, I will continue to push boundaries in Terrifier 3, and I can’t wait for you to see what’s in store for Art the Clown.”

*****

With an estimated release date of October 25th, 2024, here’s to hoping Terrifier 3 pushes the boundaries and ends up being the horror gift that keeps on giving. And for more news on the latest and greatest horror movies and television, stay tuned to Horror Press!