The following contains spoilers for Clown in a Cornfield, now playing in theatersClown in a Cornfield is a fun adaptation of the throwback slasher novel, but it does make some very specific changes in the adaptation process. Based on the Adam Cesare novel of the same name, Clown in a Cornfield focuses on the teenagers of a small town in Missouri who find themselves targeted by a mysterious killer disguised as the local mascot character, a clown named Frendo. The truth is darker than just one murderer, however, as many of the town’s adults are connected to the conspiracy.

The core narrative and ending of Clown in a Cornfield is the same from book to film, with the same four survivors escaping the Frendo killers and dispatching many of them in the process. However, the specifics of the story and the backstory of many minor characters are tweaked and simplified in the adaptation process. Here are some of the biggest differences between Clown in a Cornfield‘s book and film version.

7

Ronnie & Matt Don’t Betray The Teenagers In The Movie

The Two Teens Are Victims Instead Of Villains In The Film

One of the biggest changes from the Clown in a Cornfield book to the film adaptation is the role that Ronnie and Matt play in the overall story. In both versions of the plot, Ronnie and Matt are members of the clique that Quinn befriends in Kettle Springs. They are involved in the production of short films that portray Frendo as a horror character, and both of them are killed by the end of the story. However, Matt and Ronnie are victims of the Frendo slaughter in the film, but were actually involved in the scheme in the book.

In the book, Ronnie and Matt agree to work with the adults in the town in exchange for their own safety. They survive the initial slaughter of the town’s teens and even try to frame Quinn as one of the killers. This leads to a fight against Quinn where both Matt and Ronnie are killed. In the film, Matt is beheaded by a Frendo and Ronnie is killed in the cornfield by the chainsaw Frendo. This ensures the characters remain more sympathetic to the audience and don’t clutter up the finale.

6

Dr. Maybrook Helps Save Cole In The Film

Glenn Maybrook Is More Active In Clown In A Cornfield’s Cinematic Version

Quinn’s father Glenn Maybrook is one of the most important supporting characters in both versions of Clown in a Cornfield, moving to the small town of Kettle Springs with Quinn after the death of his wife to an overdose. Glenn plays a more vital role in the climax of the film, however, killing a Frendo and racing to the climatic confrontation. In the movie, Glenn drives his car into the barn where the Frendos are planning to kill Quinn and Cole, killing two of them. This also provides Cole, who has been strung up in a noose, with a platform to stand on.

In the book, a car barrels into the room and provides Cole a stage to stand on, but it’s Rust who is driving the car. Rust also arrives suddenly in the climax of the film, but that reveal is saved for the very end of the sequence instead of being set off by Rust’s arrival. It gives Rust a more heroic moment in the finale and makes his big dramatic kiss with Cole more romantic. However, the movie’s tweak allows Glenn to be more active in the climax, allowing him and Quinn’s arc to feel more complete as a result.

5

Trudy Isn’t The Frendo Who Loses Their Hand To Rust In The Movie

Trudy Suffers A More Sudden Death In The Film

Glenn becomes more involved with the plot of Clown in a Cornfield after he’s kidnapped by the Frendos and forced to operate on one of them after they get a hand sH๏τ off by Rust. However, the victim of that injury is different in both versions. In the book, the Frendo that Glenn is forced to operate on is revealed to be Trudy, one of the waitresses at a local diner. She eventually dies of the wound, similar to her unnamed film counterpart. Glenn then murders her compatriot, earning him a kill he didn’t get in the book.

Trudy is still in the film and still dies before the end of the story, but in a different manner. While she bleeds out after getting her blasted off with a sH๏τgun in the book, the cinematic version of Clown in a Cornfield includes her in the big reveal about the adults being the real murderers. She’s killed as a result of Glenn driving into the climax to save the day, as the ensuing chaos of the crash impales her and results in her unceremonious demise.

4

Janet Is A More Important Character In The Book

The Book Gives Janet More Character Depth (But Kills Her Off Earlier In The Story)

Janet is the queen-bee of the film’s teenage clique and is the last of the teenagers to die in the film. She actually makes it all the way through the cornfield with Quinn but is fatally impaled on a pitchfork by a Frendo. Forced to defend herself, Quinn removes the weapon and uses it to kill the Frendo, but this also speeds up Quinn’s death. Quinn is a largely comedic character in the film, but got a lot more in-depth character focus in the original novel.

The Janet of the book, who is portrayed as Asian-American, is revealed to have also moved to Kettle Springs in her youth and faced prejudice from the conservative locals. Quinn also dies much earlier in the story, beheaded by the one with a chainsaw. However, her final act is to warn her classmates that there is more than one killer, ensuring the others get enough of a head start to survive. This gives Quinn a more heroic moment to go out on, as opposed to the dark comedy of the film, where she insults Quinn with her dying breath.

3

Cole Actually Started The Fire In The Book

The Cole Of The Film Is More Sympathetic

One of the big reasons why Cole and his friends are seen as problems by the local town in Clown in a Cornfield is the belief that their antics resulted in a factory burning down in the town. Although the official story is that there was faulty wiring that set off the blaze, many in the town still believe it was Cole. In the climax, it’s revealed that it was actually his father, Arthur, who set the fire as a means of framing his son and earning insurance money.

This latter reveal is a big turn, as it cements the darker side of Arthur and alleviates Cole of any guilt for the fire and the impact it had on the town. This is different from the book, where Cole is revealed to have actually gotten the factory burned down while partying there not long before the events of the book begin. This paints him a slightly more unsympathetic light, while the film shifts slightly and presents him as a sweeter-natured and innocent character.

2

Sheriff Dunne Is More Involved In The Plot

Dunne Is A Less Overtly Political Parody In The Movie

Sheriff Dunne is one of the adults most involved in the Frendo plot, seemingly serving as a main enforcer for their group under the command of Arthur Hill. In the film, he’s the heavy threat in the climax that Quinn has to outwit, leading her to lure him into a trap before dispatching him with a cattle prod. Dunne is also a major threat in the original Clown in a Cornfield, but he’s portrayed as a more important character in the narrative.

The book spends more time with Dunne and the townsfolk at large, giving a better showcase for his judgmental atтιтude and habit of blaming the local youth for all of the town’s problems. Dunne is also a more overtly political character in the book, outright referencing his plans to help “make Kettle Springs great again” in a clear allusion to Donald Trump’s MAGA movement. The removal of these elements makes Dunne a more straightforward villain for Quinn to overcome in the climax, where she shoots him instead of using a cattle prod as she does in the film.

1

A Major Conspirator In The Frendo Plot Is Missing From The Movie

Alec Murray Is An Important Minor Villain In The Book

The Fendo plot seems to involve most of the adults in the town of Kettle Spring, infusing the entire plot with a generational warfare angle that adds a grim layer to the conflict. However, the book’s expanded scope and character focus introduced other major members of the conspiracy, most notably Mr. Murray. Janet’s stepfather, Alec Murray, is treated as one of the more distinct members of the cabal to slaughter the teenagers of the local town and seems to take particular glee in seeing Janet and Cole murdered.

Alec is one of the Frendos who appears in the climax of the story but gets both his legs broken when Rust drives in to save Cole. Alec tries to finish off Cole before he dies, but Rust dispatches him with a sH๏τgun. While many of the adults from the book are tweaked somewhat in the adaptation process, Alec is more or less removed entirely. This means the character could be repurposed and fit into a potential sequel to the cinematic version of Clown in a Cornfield.