Art the Clown (David Howard Thornton) returns in Terrifier 2, this time targeting Sienna (Lauren LaVera) and her little brother Eric (Griffin Santopietro) on Halloween night. The original film was released in 2016 and became a cult classic slasher, and Terrifier 2 serves as a strong follow-up, this time including a greater story, gore, stronger characters, and more.

Terrifier 2 also stars Jenna Kanell, Chris Jericho, Georgia MacPhail, Catherine Corcoran, Samantha Scaffidi, Casey Hartnett, and more. It’s written and directed by Damien Leone.

“What I’m looking forward to the most is what fans are saying, and our new female lead, Sienna, played by Lauren LaVera. I think she’s a great addition to the Terrifier universe and kicks [expletive] as both an actress and character… we need a new kick [expletive] final girl in this genre, and I think she’s the answer to that,” said Thornton.

Lauren LaVera and David Howard Thornton in Terrifier 2

“Dave is so funny, and he’s also a ham. It’s always fun to be around him. The first time I saw him in character, he scared both me and Kaylee [Hyman] who plays Brooke. He has fun in that character for sure,” said LaVera.

Art the Clown certainly strikes a balance between frightening and joyous, which perhaps is even more horrific depending on the circumstances.

“It’s a balancing act that we do every time we shoot. My background is really in comedy, and so I naturally feel the need to be funny, and Damien is such a natural of horror, so he has that need to make everything scary. We have that great balance with each other, and so we’re always trying to walk that fine line… because we don’t want to go too crazy over the top… it’s kind of fun having both sides of that personality because he can be funny one second, then he can just turn on a dime and get vicious,” explained Thornton.

Related: Exclusive: Terrifier 2's David Howard Thornton Channeled the Joker to Play Art the Clown

Best Kill Scenes in Terrifier 2

ArttheClown
Cinedigm

Art the Clown has a lot of fun while targeting Sienna and Eric, including him killing anyone that crosses their paths. This includes their friends or complete strangers. Though, there are some scenes that are a lot more graphic than others, which were done so in order to live up to the notoriety of the hacksaw scene from the original Terrifier. One scene, in particular, certainly does, and was noted by both Thornton and LaVera to be their favorite of all the kill scenes.

“I believe it’s already being referred to affectionately as the bedroom kill… when I read the script, the first time I think I went back and read it five more times because I was shocked by it. Just the practicals were so insanely good, and it was so well executed that I think people will go crazy,” commented LaVera.

“It’s one of those kills that we took as a challenge for ourselves to make this more over the top than the hacksaw scene in the first film. Damien went crazy with this kill. It took us about a week to film this because there are just so many elements, so many practical elements that he had to build for it… I have to say, the actress involved outdid herself, having to go to that level of fear and hysteria every single day for a week. That’s hard to do and to keep it at that level every single day, she nailed it,” added Thornton.

Related: Terrifier 2 Review and Director Interview: Art the Clown Will Kill Anyone and Their Mother

Possibility for Terrifier 3 and Where They Hope the Story Goes

Terrifier 2
Bloody Disgusting

In a previous interview, Leone expressed interest in making the Terrifier universe into a trilogy and explained that it would allow for a beginning, middle, and end that would satisfy fans. Both Thornton and LaVera commented that they would be on board for Terrifier 3 and shared with us a bit about what they’d like to see from it.

“I have said to Damien that I would love to see Jonathan’s character [Eric] be more fleshed out. I think what has happened to Jonathan at such a pivotal age, he could have a really interesting story arc where he’s tortured mentally, maybe suffering from substance abuse or something like that. That’s what I would love to see, but who knows what will happen,” said LaVera.

“We already have some ideas going forward, and I can’t wait to get into all that stuff,” said Thornton. “I would like to see Art get more ambitions. Personally, I would try to outdo Jason, I think he has the highest kill count right now, and I would like to see him take on Jason’s kill count. I would like to see a big huge set piece where he just kills a boatload of people and just goes wild, but also still retain the essence of what is Art. So still keep those real-world moments like the laundromat scene. That’s what makes him more relatable to an audience as well, finding that balance of going really crazy but also keeping it grounded.”

Terrifier 2 will be in theaters on October 6, 2022, from Cinedigm in partnership with Iconic Events.