Dread X: TERRIFIER’s David Howard Thornton Picks His Top 10 Killer Clowns!
Last year, our release of Damien Leone’s Terrifier not only wowed critics and audiences, it put the film’s villain Art the Clown squarely amongst the pantheon of horror icons. Played expertly by David Howard Thornton, images of Art are now a staple at horror conventions and fans are clamoring for a sequel, which is currently in the works!
Today, there’s a huge announcement as we’ve teamed up with Broke Horror Fan, who is going to be selling a very limited amount of Terrifier copies on V/H/S as part of their Broke Horror Fan Presents line! The announcement and details can be read right here. Simply put, there are 200 copies (150 standard and 50 limited) that will go on sale next Friday.
As BHF explains, “Each copy will include a letter from writer-director Damien Leone, an exclusive introduction by Art the Clown actor David Howard Thornton, and special features after the movie.” And to make sure the viewing experience feels authentic, the film has been cropped to a 4:3 ratio, which was approved by writer/director Damien Leone!
To celebrate the release, we got Thornton to give us a list of his Top 10 Killer Clowns! Here’s a message from Art himself:
“One of my fondest memories from my childhood is my grandparents taking me to the circus for my first time. I loved it and was fully enraptured by all of the acts. The one part that truly spoke to me, though, were the clowns. I found them to be funny and fascinating at the same, and from there my love of clowns was born. I’ve always enjoyed clowns, going from Bozo to the Joker, and my first role in a musical was that of the Sad Faced Clown in Barnum. Oddly enough, I have never found them scary, though I can understand why their exaggerated and not quite human features and movements unnerve so many. I think a lot of that fear of them that people have stems from horror films that have featured them. There is definitely something mesmerizing about something that is meant to delight and inspire joy instead of being a force for death and destruction. Art the Clown delights in causing mischievous mayhem, and my portrayal of him was inspired by many killer clowns that came before him. Here are my top 10 killer clowns of all time!“
Read on for Howard’s Top 10 Killer Clowns and make sure to pick up a copy of Terrifier right here!
Stitches the Clown from Stitches
This movie was an unexpected surprise for me. The idea of a birthday clown seeking revenge on the bratty kids that killed him at a birthday party was a fun concept. The use of eggs in this film was new to me too. I especially loved his droll sense of humor and use of cartoonish attacks and creative deaths. Definitely a fun character to start the list off with!
Kent from Clown
Speaking of birthday clowns, the idea putting on a cursed and unremovable clown outfit for your child’s birthday party is a fun twist on the genre. The transformation that he goes through into being this demonic being was thoroughly unnerving.
The clown toy from Poltergeist
Poltergeist was probably the very first horror film that I ever saw as a child. I remember sneaking into the den while my parents were having a movie night with friends. This was the scene that I was greeted by, a creepy child’s toy attacking a little boy like myself. This scene caused me to run from the room, thus alerting my parents to my sneaking out of bed. How funny that years later I would be playing a killer clown myself!
Papa Corn from Circus of the Dead
What a fun character and sadistic character that Bill Oberst Jr plays! He and his band of depraved clowns relish in causing mayhem and breaking people both mentally and physically. He’s definitely someone that Art would hang out with. I hope to see more of him in the future.
The Killer Klowns from Killer Klowns From Outer Space
Classic killer clown film! I think these clowns set a benchmark for the genre is a lot of ways from their extremely creative and over the top cartoonish kills to their iconic look. I’ve always loved these guys, and have heard rumblings of another one being made!
Ronald McDonald:
Let’s face it, this guy is probably responsible for more deaths than anyone on this list. Also, have you seen Willard Scott as Ronald? Nightmare fuel!!! Ronald is not as prevalent today with kids as he was when I was a kid, but he has always had an impact on my life. There is a funny story from my childhood involving him when he came to my hometown and performed a magic show at a local McDonald’s. I was his assistant for his collapsing wand trick. He had this bad tendency to spit when he was talking and he kept spitting in my face. I dabbled in magic and knew how the trick worked and was tired of getting covered in clown spit, so I sabotaged his act repeatedly making him mad enough to kick me off stage. How many people can say they pissed off Ronald McDonald? A bit of Art was born that day.
Twisty the Clown from American Horror Story
John Carroll Lynch brought to life a very very creepy and intriguing character as Twisty. He was a very unnerving, violent, and sometimes sympathetic character. And can we talk about his look without the mask? Yikes! He was, bar none, t
Captain Spaulding from House of 1,000 Corpses, The Devil’s Rejects, 3 From Hell
Sid Haig is the MAN! He fully owns this role as this sadistic killer and plays it with such glee. You are simply riveted by his performance and can never take my eyes of the screen when he is in a scene. I derived much of the charisma that I put into Art from his portrayal. I can’t wait to see the next installment!
Pennywise from It
Technically, It is not a clown, but I don’t care. I love this character and have loved both portrayals of him by both Tim and Bill. This is the film that I think really started making people afraid of clowns in the first place, and no wonder why. This character is a master manipulator of people’s fears. Art is, in a way, the opposite end of the spectrum from Pennywise. Where Pennywise is colorful, Art is black and white. Where Pennywise is loud and brash, Art is silent. etc. Between the two of them, no one stand a chance!
The Joker from Batman
Funny story, there was a clown that actually scared me, but it wasn’t from a film… it was from a toy. I had those old Mego Batman toys from back in the day as a kid. I loved them… except for the Joker. For some reason, that toy scared the crap out of my 3 year old self and my parents had to hide him from me, which baffled them since I loved the character on reruns of the 60’s show. I have always loved The Joker. He’s my number one villain of all time. I just love the idea of a killer clown that is both funny and murderously insane and scary as Hell at the same time. He’s always been a fascinating character to me. Of course, my favorite version of him to date is Mark Hamill’s take on the character, which I think is the closest to how I imagine him when I read the comics. Even though Art does not speak, I have found most of my inspiration for him from The Joker, especially for the glee he takes in spreading chaos and mayhem. I’ve had the good fortune to play him on the fan made web series “Nightwing: Escalation” and have enjoyed every minute of it. My dream, though, is to one day bring him to live on film or a tv series. I’d love to put a smile on everyone’s face! Haaaa ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haaa!
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