WARNING: This list contains huge spoilers for both Terrifier and Terrifier 2.Just in time for Halloween, movie-goers have been treated to some great and some not-so-great horror movies.Smiletook everyone by surprise and became a startling box-office smash,Barbarianwas praised for its originality and subversion of expectations and is now adored, andHalloween Endswas released earlier this month to close out David Gordon-Green’s epicHalloweentrilogy. But despite all these great horror films still being in theaters, there is only one movie that everyone’s talking about.
Terrifier 2crept up from behind and became a success from its reputation alone. Die-hard horror fans are no strangers to Art the Clown. His exploits from his 2016 filmTerrifiergarnered a significant cult following, so much so that it created a demand for a sequel. Now that he’s back, he’s making sure everyone knows his name.Terrifier 2has become such a huge success on a small budget and limited theater release that its initial limited run was extended due to fan demand. Art is a horror icon in the making, and for those who have yet to see either of his films, here are the top ten moments from theTerrifierfranchise.
10Clown Café
This trippy dream sequence fromTerrifier 2was the first instance in which viewers understood that the clown may be far more than a walking corpse. Sienna dreams that she’s in a children’s show café dedicated to Art the Clown, a killer who has become infamous since his first massacre in the original 2016 film. The sequence starts as a creepy sing-a-long, with peculiarly dressed teens and disturbing images, but soon devolves into mayhem as soon as the man of the hour arrives. Art wastes no time slaughtering his adoring public before burning their bodies. Wounded, Sienna finds her father’s sword that he gifted to her before her death, but is killed before she can face the clown. She then wakes to find her dresser in flames, but the blade remains untouched. This freaky scene is the first instance in which it’s msde evident that Sienna and Art’s fates are linked. Some may not know what to make of it, but it’s clear that Sienna isn’t someone who will go down without a fight.
9Skin Suit
It’s made clear in the early minutes ofTerrifierthat Art is a savage killer, but throughout both films, he’s still able to shock with his increasingly wild kills. When the character referred to as the Cat Woman goes in search of her beloved doll, she finds it in the loving hands of Art, whom she had just watched kill someone moments prior. In her defense, she was not in her right mind from the start. Otherwise, she might have known better than to appeal to the human nature of a psychopath dressed as a clown. Being the prankster that he is, Art plays along for a moment. But when Victoria comes looking for her sister, she instead finds a naked Art wearing The Cat Woman’s scalp and chest as a disguise. It was clear from the start of the film that no line would go uncrossed. It’s here that Art shows he will do anything for a laugh. This scalping is undoubtedly one of the most brutal in theTerrifierfranchise, even if it doesn’t occur on-screen.
8Art’s Second Resurrection
By the end ofTerrifier 2,it has more than been established that Art is un-killable, having taken a point-blank gunshot, blunt force trauma, and a bullet through the brain. Losing his head at the end of the film should have been enough to finish him, right? As it turns out, Art has the backing of a higher power. The end of the movie revisits one of Art’s previous victims from the last film, who now appears to have different feelings about her attacker as she ends theTerrifier 2by giving birth to Art’s severed head. As with many famous slashers, Art refuses to die and will come back by any means to continue his fun. Fans may not know exactly what Art or the presence keeping him alive is, but one thing is for sure: this isn’t the last we’ll see the silent clown.
7Tara’s Death
By this point,Terrifierhad only been shocking viewers with its kills and David Howard Thornton’s performance as Art, but no one was expecting this curveball. Having just witnessed the deranged clown murder her best friend, Tara goes on the attack to end the clown. Beating him back with whatever she could find, she let her rage pour out. However, no one expected that Art, who had primarily used knives and blunt objects for his dirty work, would step outside the slasher handbook to get the job done. And that he did when he pulled a gun from his ankle and shot Tara in the face. By this point, Tara had been thehorror film’s final girl, and it was only the halfway point. But, because Art doesn’t discriminate, he then followed it up by shooting Tara in the face a few more times before propping her body up for display. Anyone who thinks this was bad should see what Art did to his next target.
Related:Terrifier 2: Art the Clown Actor Says Lauren LaVera is ‘the Answer’ to Horror’s Need for a New Final Girl
6Art’s Suicide
In a film where Art was committing all manner of horrific crimes that came to mind, he proved that he’s not the kind of guy who would let anyone step on his fun. It was a long night for his victims inTerrifier(some more than others), but it came to an end when the police arrived to end his wild killing spree. However, Art didn’t much care for the idea of going to prison. Having just mutilated his final victim, Art pulled his ankle gun once again and, smiling to the police as he did so, proceeded to commit suicide. Art even thought his own death was funny. For anyone who wanted Art to see some form of justice following his rampage, this ending may have come as something of a disappointment, especially since he had just disfigured a victim for the rest of their life. It makes sense as Art always has to get the last laugh. Luckily, there was still plenty of chance for him to get the punishment he deserved inTerrifier2.
5Art’s New Friend
Having just returned from death at the start ofTerrifier 2, Art makes his way to the local laundromat to clean the blood from his suit. It’s there that he makes a new friend, known only asThe Pale Girl. Like Art, she also doesn’t speak and wears a similar outfit. Unfortunately, she also shares his sick sense of humor and says hello by defecating on the floor. The two hit it off quickly and are soon working together on a new bunch of victims. What separates The Pale Girl from Art is that she’s a specter that only he, Sienna Shaw, and her brother Jonathan can see, but she does know how to make her presence felt. She accompanies Art on his exploits and aids him in luring victims. She also haunts Sienna and Jonathan throughout, further adding to the strange connection between the two clowns and the Shaw family. By the end, it’s clear that she may have more sinister secrets in store, but that’ll have to wait until the next film.
4Sienna vs. Art
One of the things thatTerrifier 2benefits most from is having a great final girl. Sienna is a regular high school girl, but she’s not weak. Anyone would be terrified when being stalked by a blood-soaked clown, and Sienna justifiably is, but she isn’t afraid to fight back. She takes a lot of damage from Art, but she gives it right back. The climax of the film is long and sees Sienna and her brother trying to escape the clown, but it’s action-driven and sees the siblings throwing whatever they can at Art to put him down. Lauren LaVera breathes life into Sienna and plays her as a final girl like no other. Theactress’s stunt work and dedicationto the role make it easy for anyone to root for her. It’s safe to say by the end of their encounter that even Art comes to respect her. Every good villain needs an adversary, and Art has found his.
Related:Exclusive: Terrifier 2’s David Howard Thornton Channeled the Joker to Play Art the Clown
3Talk Show
The first scene ofTerrifierwas the first indicator that viewers were about to witness a bloody and savage slasher film like no other. The film starts with a view of a small TV in a dingy room and opens on a talk show featuring one of Art’s victims with severe facial disfiguration. The host, Monica Brown, questions the guest about her attack, but things soon fly off the rails when the guest goes into a rage at the implication that Art may still be alive. It’s a shocking way to start the film, but that was only the beginning. The film then cuts to after the interview, where Monica is assaulted by the same guest and has her eyes graphically gouged out for her insults. Director Damien Leone clearly wanted viewers to know as soon as possible what kind of movie they were going to be watching, and it’s certainly a unique opening to a movie that consistently dares viewers to stop watching.
2Hacksaw Death
If there’s one thing that should be a no-brainer, it’s that under no circumstances should one antagonize a strange man dressed as a clown. A lesson Dawn clearly didn’t understand inTerrifier,which ishow she ended up becoming one of the most iconic kills in the series. In Tara’s desperate escape from Art, she’s knocked unconscious and wakes up tied to a chair. Art, brandishing a bag of weapons, unveils Tara’s best friend, Dawn, stripped naked and hanging upside down by her ankles. Art has always been one who takes pride and pleasure in his work, and this is perhaps the biggest indicator of how detached from reality he may be. With a big smile on his face and genuine joy in his heart, Art forces Tara to watch as he saws Dawn in half from between her legs to her jaw. Most of the gore isn’t shown, but the horror comes from seeing the reactions of all three. It’s ironic that in a film filled to the brim with gore, the lesst visible kill becomes the most iconic. What’s even more terrifying is that this would not be Art’s grisliest crime.
1Bedroom Scene
The number one spot goes to the kill everyone is talking about, and the one that’s been sending viewers running from theaters. The bedroom scene may be one of the bloodiest and most graphic murders ever put on the big screen and is said to haveleft viewers puking and faintingin the cinema. Here, we see Art going after Allie, one of Sienna’s friends. After breaking into her house on Halloween, he proceeds to chase her to her room, where he mercilessly butchers her. This one girl sees so much punishment that most people would have died from the shock long before it’s over. What makes this scene notable is its duration. Art is a savage and just keeps going. Every moment the brutality appears to be over only sees Art return to inflict even more punishment. No other killer put on film is so violent.Terrifier 2has become a hit in theaters despite its small budget and limited releases. Art may very well become thehorror icon of the 2020s, and if so, it’ll be because of scenes like this. The sheer brutality in this scene alone is enough to make Jigsaw of theSawfranchise blush.
