TERRIFIER 4 Will Reveal Art the Clown’s Origins in a “Lynchian” Way, Says Director Damien Leone
As horror fans gear up for the return of Terrifier, director Damien Leone is teasing something really wild for Terrifier 4. While the upcoming sequel will finally crack open the door to Art the Clown’s mysterious past, don’t expect the story to be spelled out. Leone has a very specific approach in mind, and it’s inspired by one of the most iconic auteurs in cinema.
In a recent interview with Collider, Leone explained how the late David Lynch has influenced his storytelling style for Terrifier 4.
“Once I wrote part 2, I decided to really start telling the story. I wanted to tell it almost in a Lynchian way. I could never be on the same level as David Lynch. He’s one of my heroes.
“But I love the way he tells stories, and they’re very abstract. He doesn’t give you answers. If he ever tried to articulate, it would trivialize and diminish the beauty of what he’s done as an artist. His voice is his work. He’s not supposed to just tell you what he did.”
This “Lynchian way” means don’t expect Terrifier 4 to give up all its secrets. Art the Clown’s origins may be coming into focus, but Leone is more interested in preserving the eerie unknown. He added:
“That’s the most important part, even if people don’t realize it because they’re just so hungry to know what his deal is. I think a lot of people don’t realize the reason he works so well is because of the mystique. If you pull the curtain back too far, and you lose that mystique, it’s over... It’s almost always a disappointment.”
Art the Clown is played by David Howard Thornton and the character has evolved into a full-blown horror icon since his terrifying debut in Terrifier. Fans have spent years wondering who (or what) Art really is. Shot in the face in the first movie, “murdered” by Sienna in Terrifier 2, then somehow resurrected in Terrifier 3, Art clearly isn’t your average slasher villain. But he’s not completely unstoppable either.
At the end of Terrifier 3, Art chooses to flee rather than finish off Sienna, which suggests some limits to his power. His resurrection is another complicated story altogether. To return from the dead, Art had to possess Victoria from Terrifier 2, have her give birth to his head, and then slowly recover in a creepy abandoned house. He doesn’t just bounce back. He literally had to be reborn.
Leone confirms that Terrifier 4 will finally dig into all of this, possibly for the last time. “A lot of answers” are coming, but they’ll arrive wrapped in the surreal horror language that Lynch fans know and love. So don’t expect a clean, neat origin story. Expect something way more unsettling.
Terrifier 4 might just be the end of the road for Art the Clown, or maybe it’s just the beginning. Either way, we’re getting a peek behind the curtain. Just don’t expect to understand everything you see.