Damien Leone, creator and director of the Terrifier franchise, finally took Art the Clown (David Howard Thornton) out of the Halloween season, and it wasn't that hard of a decision. While promoting Terrifier 3, Leone shared how his love of the Christmas horror subgenre ignited his creativity for the carnage Art left behind in the threequel. He also revealed the specific Christmas horror work that was his biggest source of inspiration. Instead of a classic movie that audiences might expect, like Silent Night, Deadly Night, it was a TV episode directed by Hollywood filmmaker Robert Zemeckis that compelled Leone to slice into his version of a murderous Santa.
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Why ‘Terrifier 3’ Is Set at Christmas
The idea for Art the Clown to invade the Yuletide holiday began when Terrifier 2 was being made, during a four-hour drive to set. In an interview with Collider, Leone said how producer Phil Falcone noticed the decorations outside the window and mentioned bringing the demonic clown of Miles County into the season of giving, something that Leone thought was a great idea. Out of the holiday horror classics in the subgenre, Leone went on to add how he loved 1974's Black Christmas — he even put in a callback to it in Terrifier 3 where Art hibernates for several years by sitting near a window, similar to the corpse in the sorority house attic — but that early slasher didn’t have the killer Santa, or the “Christmas horror atmosphere” as he put it, that inspired him.
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“My favorite horror Christmas episode ever is called ‘And All Through the House,’” Leone told Collier, from Season 1 of the HBO horror anthology series Tales from the Crypt. It’s the same segment that originally starred Joan Collins in the 1972 British film adaptation, and both stories keep the same premise as the original short story: an unhappy wife kills her husband, only to have her plans foiled by an escaped killer dressed as, you guessed it, Santa Claus. Damien Leone preferred the remake from 1989 (it's not currently streaming anywhere, but YouTube has a good-quality version) which improved upon the original, resulting in a stylish, funny, and creepy holiday treat.
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‘Tales from the Crypt’ Has Damien Leone's Favorite Christmas Horror Entry
Behind the camera, director Robert Zemeckis and cinematographer Dean Cundey are at their best. They capture a cozy aesthetic in the one-house setting for “And All Through the House” with a lush, decorated Christmas tree, a crackling Yule log, and a persistent snowfall outside. Of course, the coziness doesn't last. On-screen, there is a Looney Tunes energy to the life-and-death struggle between Elizabeth (Mary Ellen Trainor, the flustered mom from The Goonies) and the prowling Santa (L.A. Law's Larry Drake, who also played the slasher in Dr. Giggles) that is as silly as it is deranged, marking a shift in tone from the serious 1972 adaptation.
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Trainor is in full diva mode as Elizabeth, who complains that her dead husband didn’t lose weight as she drags his corpse away to dispose of it; meanwhile, Drake's clumsy killer gets knocked around like one of the Wet Bandits from Home Alone. The dark sense of humor is surely something Damien Leone enjoyed, seeing how he includes gallows humor in the Terrifier franchise. Despite "And All Through the House" not being as violent as Art’s shocking kills, it still inspired Leone to put his own spin on a Christmas evening besieged by murder and darkness.
Art the Clown Is a New Homicidal Santa
Replacing Larry Drake’s nearly wordless Santa is a fully silent Art who chops into the yuletide spirit, smashing an axe into doors and victims. Although both killers encounter a little girl who confuses them for the real Kris Kringle, Leone brings his cold open to a cold-blooded ending that Zemeckis didn't attempt. It’s sadistic, but not without that startling laugh that audiences get upon seeing Art eat the cookies left out for Santa and then wash the plate off as if he didn’t just massacre the family of the house he’s in.
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In one of the best scenes where there is no blood in sight, Art heads to the college dorm where Jonathan (Elliot Fullam) is, wearing a pair of festive sunglasses and carrying his bag of goodies (deadly weapons), as a spooky version of a Christmas carol plays. Like the killer Kris Kringle arriving at Elizabeth's house, the demonic clown of Miles County has a little too much fun wearing a Santa Claus getup. After getting your fill of Terrifier 3, fans should watch the Christmas horror episode of Tales from the Crypt for a delicious blend of horror and holiday spirit.
Terrifier 3 is in theaters now.
Terrifier 3
Terrifier 3 follows survivors Sienna and her brother as they attempt to recover from their traumatic encounter with the sinister Art the Clown. As the holiday season arrives, their efforts to find peace are shattered when Art returns, intent on turning their Christmas into a new nightmare.
- 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
- Main Genre
- Horror
- Writers
- Damien Leone
