Terrifier 4: David Howard Thornton Doesn’t Want a Sympathetic Origin Story for Art the Clown

Damien Leone is preparing to bring Art the Clown back for Terrifier 4, the next chapter in his increasingly brutal slasher franchise. While details about the sequel remain limited, the filmmaker has confirmed that the story will explore Art’s past. However, fans shouldn’t necessarily expect that exploration to make the killer any more sympathetic.

The fourth installment is expected to take place around New Year’s Eve, giving Art another holiday to turn into a nightmare. David Howard Thornton will also return as the silent killer, a role that has made him one of modern horror’s most recognizable villains.

During a recent panel at Chattanooga Comic Con, hosted by ComicBook.com, Thornton discussed the upcoming film and shared his thoughts on the possibility of revealing more about Art’s origins.

David Howard Thornton Wants Art the Clown to Remain Pure Evil

Thornton explained that he initially asked Leone about Art’s identity and motivations when he first began playing the character. At the time, however, even the filmmaker didn’t have a definitive explanation.

“When I first sat down in the make-up chair with [Damien], I was like, ‘Tell me everything about Art. Who is he? Why does he do what he’s doing? Because I just want to know that just for my own self.’ And he’s like, ‘I don’t know.’ So over the years, we’ve talked about different things, and we keep changing ideas and all that,” Thornton recalled.

Although the ideas surrounding Art’s past have evolved over the years, the actor says there’s one direction he and Leone don’t want to take: giving the murderous clown a tragic or sympathetic history.

“So I don’t know what he’s going to land on. But I know one thing we’ve talked about is, we don’t want him to have a sympathetic background. In my head, he basically is evil incarnate. He came out of the womb just evil. In my mind, he would have strangled his mother with his own umbilical cord as soon as he came out of the womb.”

Thornton is nevertheless interested in seeing how Terrifier 4 approaches the subject. He also hopes the film will answer some long-standing questions about the character, including why Art never speaks.

“So I’m very interested to see how we tackle it. I’m hoping there are different things we address… why he’s silent, stuff like that,” the actor added.

What We Know About Terrifier 4

Leone has previously teased that Terrifier 4 will explore Art’s backstory, although the precise details of that history remain under wraps. The director has also described the upcoming movie as a major chapter for the franchise, calling it “the most epic, horrifying, thrilling, emotional and satisfying conclusion to the saga.”

Alongside Thornton, franchise regulars Lauren LaVera (Sienna Shaw) and Samantha Scaffidi (Victoria Heyes) are expected to return.

The franchise began with Terrifier in 2016 before expanding with Terrifier 2 in 2022. The third film, Terrifier 3, arrived in 2024 and became a major box office success, opening at number one and setting a record as the highest-grossing unrated film of all time.

More details about Terrifier 4, including its production schedule and release plans, are expected as the project moves forward.