Terrifier 4 director Damien Leone reveals the upcoming movie will dive into Art the Clown’s origins. Played by David Howard Thornton, the killer clown has terrorized Miles County, New York as the main antagonist in the previous three movies. Ahead of Terrifier 3‘s release in 2024, the director announced that a new Terrifier movie in the series is in the works.

In an interview with 3C Films at Texas Frightmare Weekend, Leone teases Art the Clown’s backstory in the upcoming Terrifier 4. Not only will the next movie reveal the killer clown’s past, but the director also promised that it’ll happen “in the first 15 minutes” of the sequel’s runtime. Check out his comments below:

I know this word gets used a lot, but it’s going to be epic, it’s not going to disappoint. You’re going to get Art’s backstory in the first 15 minutes.

What Leone’s Comments Mean For Terrifier 4

Terrifier 4 Won’t Purely Focus On Art’s Origin

At the end of Terrifier 3, Sienna’s cousin Gabbie falls into a portal to Hell along with the sword that can defeat Art, while the killer clown rides out on a city bus, continuing to terrify the residents of Miles County. Leone’s comments suggest that Terrifier 4 is likely to open with Art’s backstory, but placing the origin sequences at the very beginning indicates that the origin story serves as a setup instead of the movie’s main focus.

Leone also recently teased that Terrifier 4 will walk the line between gory kills and plot. Having only 15 minutes dedicated to telling Art’s killer origin echoes his previous statement. At the same time, with Terrifier 3 leveling up the gore, it sounds like Art’s backstory might be able to help the movie set up even more gruesome kills as Sienna attempts to save her cousin. It sounds like Leone has some “epic” kills in mind for the upcoming movie.

Our Take On Art The Clown’s Backstory In Terrifier 4

The First 15 Minutes Is The Perfect Time To Tell Art’s Origin Story

Art the Clown’s origins have been a mystery in the Terrifier franchise, which makes the revelation of his true past very exciting in Terrifier 4. One theory explains that Art was once a human serial killer, while another sees him as a demonic force. It sounds like the scores will be settled in the first 15 minutes of the next movie, expected to arrive in theaters in October 2026.

Terrifier 3 has set up the perfect backdrop for the upcoming fourth installment. Sienna isn’t going to leave her cousin in Hell, which means she might have to hop into another dimension. It’s unclear how everything lines up, but with Terrifier 4 expected to be the last entry in the series, the reveal of Art’s killer origin sounds like the perfect opening for the movie, in which fans might see him being defeated at last.

Source: 3C Films/YouTube