Warning: This article contains spoilers for the Terrifier franchise.
As Terrifier 3 makes box office history, fans have sent Damien Leone's Terrifier 2to the top of the Freevee chart. The crowd-funded supernatural slasher movie turned Art the Clown from an intriguing but mostly unknown character into a horror icon for a generation, and everyone has been taking advantage of its free streaming home on Amazon's Freevee service.
Terrifier 2 became an unexpected box office success in 2022. The film was far from the first movie to feature the newest maniacal clown on the cinematic block, but it was the first to really register in the zeitgeist and capture the attention of both audiences and critics. Thanks to the publicity surrounding its ultra-violent content and a relentless 138 minute runtime - something that seemed overly indulgent and excessive for a '80s slasher throwback - the franchise made a huge leap that has now paid off massively. The movie delivered an implausibly strong Rotten Tomatoes critics' score of 87%, and audience score of 81%.
Terrifier 2 proved itself to be more than just a homage to some brutal and nasty movies of the past, justifying its length by introducing a new leading character in Lauren LaVera's Sienna Shaw, a creepy new presence known as "The Pale Girl," and steeping the franchise in a supernatural mystery. The film did not explain why Art had been resurrected in the final moments of 2016's Terrifier, who his eerie young side-kick is, or why one of his original victims turns out to be just as evil as he is. There was a good reason for this...as Leone is playing the long game with his groundbreaking franchise.
Terrifier 3 Begins to Explain Art's Demonic Origins and Sets Up a Sequel Close
Damien Leone has already made it clear that he has Art the Clown's story mapped out, and it shows, as, gore aside, Terrifier 3 ramps up the horror and the revelations about a character in a way that has captured audiences in a way that has not been seen for decades. In addition, the film originally scored 94% on RT's Tomatometer, before falling to a more expected 76%, while its audience score has remained high at 89%.
Terrifier 3 continues to expand on the supernatural elements that were briefly seen taking place in the final moments of Terrifier and became a core element of Terrifier 2. One scene in particular, in which LaVera's Sienna explains to her brother why an evil entity has chosen to possess Art, and his original surviving victim, Victoria, also explains the present of the Pale Girl in Terrifier 2. For those who are not just watching for chainsaw enemas and skinned skulls, Terrifier 3 makes it almost impossible to resist revisiting the previous movies and see how all of its revelations were clearly signposted in advance.
12:31 Related Terrifier 3 Director Damien Leone Talks Christmas Horror & Continuing the Franchise
The auteur discusses taking Christmas horror to a gory new extreme and preparing for Terrifier 4.
Terrifier 3 has taken more in its opening weekend than Terrifier 2 took in its entire theatrical run, the scene is now set for Leone to do some real damage with Terrifier 4. Having already turned down the option of bringing Terrifer to a mainstream audience through a major studio, the writer/director has almost managed to achieve that level of success without compromising his original vision for the franchise. With his next installment, there will be many big budget movies quaking at the idea of opening in cinemas in the same release window.
3.5/5 Terrifier 3 Not RatedHorror
Terrifier 3 follows Sienna and her brother as they attempt to move past the traumatic events of Art the Clown's Halloween massacre. As they embrace the Christmas season, Art reemerges, intent on turning their holiday into a nightmare, continuing his reign of terror.
Release Date October 11, 2024 Director Damien Leone Cast Lauren LaVera , David Howard Thornton , Antonella Rose , Elliott Fullam , Samantha Scaffidi , Margaret Anne Florence , Bryce Johnson , Alexa Blair Robertson , Mason Mecartea , Krsy Fox , Luciana VanDette , Clint Howard , Bradley Stryker , Daniel Roebuck , Chris Jericho , Tom Savini , Jason Patric , Alex Ross , Kailey Hyman , Kellen Raffaelo , Lisa Marie Falcone , Stephen Cofield Jr. , Corrine Kelly , Joe Falcone , Peter Mitchell , Marie Maser , Jon Abrahams Runtime 125 Minutes Main Genre Horror Writers Damien Leone Studio(s) Dark Age Cinema , Fuzz on the Lens Productions Distributor(s) Cineverse prequel(s) Terrifier , Terrifier 2 Franchise(s) Terrifier Character(s) Sienna , Art the Clown , Gabbie , Jonathan , Victoria Heyes , Jessica , Greg , Mia , Cole , Jennifer , Juliet , Smokey , Eddie , Santa / Charlie , Burke , Bystander , Michael , Mark , Brooke , Timmy , Dispatch , Officer Evans , Bag Lady , Dean , Cosplayer , Receptionist , Dennis Expand