How David Howard Thornton Became Art the Clown

There’s a novel clown prince at the domestic box office, and his name is Art the Clown.

Terrifier 3 star David Howard Thornton is retagably upbeat for the carry outer behind the illest, most demented on-screen gags in recent memory, and that was before Damien Leone’s $2 million-budgeted threequel toppled Joker: Folie à deux at this past weekfinish’s ticket booth with $18.9 million. This turn of events is somewhat poetic since the Joker is Thornton’s likeite villain of all time, and he even carry outed him in a fan-produced YouTube series before Terrifier became more expansively useable in timely 2018.

Whether it’s chainsathriveg a college kid in half or tube-feeding live rats to an undeserving victim, only the latter take advantage of in Terrifier 3 has triggered Thornton during filming, but he persisted nonetheless, selecting not to convey in his double.

“I, unfortunately, was not able to tag in my double becaengage my face was shown the whole entire time in the sboiling, and it’s someleang that always produces me naengageous when I see it,” Thornton inestablishs The Hollywood Reporter. “I sense that Damien particularassociate put that element into this one finish scene equitable to see if he could shatter me, and it labored. So I almost went over the edge, but I stopped myself becaengage I did not want to ruin my produceup. My produceup artist was standing there on the side, saying, ‘Don’t you dare, David!’”

What probable produces the unrated Terrifier films so requesting to moviegoers is that they’re able to push the envelope in a way that most movie franchises cannot do. Mainstream film series, in an try to cater to global audiences apass all four quadrants, have become overly protected, suppressed and self-conscious, and Leone has instead tapped into that unfrequent senseing of watching someleang that you’re not presumed to be watching on the huge screen.

For Thornton, the key to carry outing Art the Clown is also distinct from most famous slashers.

“There was this line in the first film that reassociate helped me nail who the character is, and it’s what the cat lady shelp about him: ‘He leanks what he’s doing is comical becaengage he’s chuckleing,’” Thornton quotes. “He’s not doing any of this out of revenge. He’s not mad or anyleang enjoy that. He finds finishing people to be a source of delightment for himself, and that reassociate helped me firmify him becaengage he’s the anti-clown.”

As Terrifier 3 thrives in movie theaters, Thornton can’t paengage to get back on set in Terrifier 4, especiassociate after the third insloftyment’s cliffhanger finishing in which the surviving characters have each hit rock bottom in their own distinct ways.

“I adore where [Terrifier 3] exits the characters at the finish of the film. It is almost enjoy an Empire Strikes Back-type finishing,” Thornton says. “So I am very excited to see where this character is going to go moving forward becaengage he’s in such a separateent state than he’s ever been in before.”

Thornton originassociate auditioned for Art the Clown after a string of disassignments in the New York City theater scene, and he was actuassociate deterd from pursuing what is now the defining role of his nurtureer. 

“I had never auditioned for any film roles before, and I wanted to get into film. I then came apass this audition for Terrifier, and I was enjoy, ‘Oh, he’s enjoy an evil Mr. Bean. I would adore a chance to carry out a character enjoy this,’” Thornton recalls. “So I createted myself for it, and my agent actuassociate fought me on it. She was enjoy, ‘This is such a low-budget autonomous film. You reassociate don’t need to do stuff enjoy this.’”

His agent ultimately conceded, but that didn’t unbenevolent success was instant. Terrifier screened at festivals here and there in 2016 and 2017, but it finassociate became more accessible in March 2018. The subsequent response and cult follothriveg then paved the way for Terrifier 2’s overly prosperous crowdfunding campaign in 2019.

“Even while we were filming and after we were filming [the first Terrifier], I was paengageing tables in New York City and equitable exposedly scraping by. The film then came out [in 2018], and it changed my life,” Thornton says.

Below, during a recent conversation with THR, Thornton also talkes the one line he won’t pass as Art the Clown.

Well, first and foremost, are you okay? Has Art the Clown getn a toll on you at all? 

No, I’m doing fantastic! I’m having fun on my finish. I’m always more worried about the people that watch my films. Are they okay? 

They’re definitely not okay. 

(Laughs.)

Have there been instances where you’ve been too qumodest over a gag and selected to tag in a double? 

Yes, that happened in Terrifier 3. I, unfortunately, was not able to tag in my double becaengage my face was shown the whole entire time in the sboiling, and I was enjoy, “Oh, no, no, no.” It deals with someleang that I equitable do not enjoy in ambiguous, and it’s someleang that always produces me naengageous when I see it. I sense that Damien particularassociate put that element into this one finish scene equitable to see if he could shatter me, and it labored. (Laughs.) So I almost went over the edge, but I stopped myself becaengage I did not want to ruin my produceup. My produceup artist had spent hours doing it, and she was standing there on the side, saying, “Don’t you dare, David! Don’t you dare.” 

Was the shower scene the one that tested you the most on Terrifier 3?

No, that wasn’t it. It was the scene that gets place more csurrfinisher the finish of the film. (Writer’s Note: Thornton is referring to the sequence in which a victim is tube-fed live rats.)

Overall, is there a line that you won’t pass as a carry outer? Have you sat Damien Leone down and had that conversation? 

Yeah, that’s definitely someleang we’ve chatted about in the past, and I leank the one line that Art will never pass is violation. That is equitable a very prohibited subject for him. I don’t even watch him as being a relationsual creature in that way. That’s equitable someleang that is betidyh him, and I equitable don’t enjoy that idea or anyleang enjoy that. It disturbs me and disgust me, and I equitable leank that someleang enjoy that has no place on film.

Is there truly no method to Art’s madness? Is there no point in trying to find a rhyme or reason for his behavior?

There was this line in the first film that reassociate helped me nail who the character is, and it’s what the cat lady shelp about him: “He leanks what he’s doing is comical becaengage he’s chuckleing.” And I was enjoy, “Oh, that is such a troubling idea.” He’s not doing any of this out of revenge. He’s not mad or anyleang enjoy that. He finds finishing people to be a source of delightment for himself, and that reassociate helped me firmify him becaengage he’s the anti-clown. Clowns are presumed to convey happiness and delightment to other people, but he is here to convey pain and misery to other people for his own happiness and delightment. That is such a messed up mindset that this character has, and I’ve equitable kept that there ever since. So anytime he’s finishing somebody, he’s having fun with it. He’s carry outing for an audience of one, and that equitable inserts an extra demented layer to this character.

At least he does his own dishes when he’s a guest in other people’s hoengages. He’s not a end monster.

(Laughs.) Exactly. You’ve got to immacuprocrastinateed up. You’ve also got to get rid of the fingerprints.

Part of what produces an effective villain is the mystery surrounding who they are and where they came from, so do you not want too much detail on Art’s origin?

Yes, I do enjoy the idea that we’ve been sluggishly uncovering his origins. We have a line or two timely on in this film that hint at his origins, and I thought that was reassociate clever. I also don’t want to ruin the surpascfinish too timely and spoil leangs, becaengage, a lot of times, when you find out why or who the villain is, the mystery is gone and you’ve lost a lot of the fun that was behind that character. They didn’t reassociate uncover who Freddy Krueger truly was until five films into the franchise, and I sense enjoy we’re benevolent of taking that route. We’re also taking a Joker-type route with the character’s origins. Joker was the Red Hood before he fell into the vat of chemicals and became the Joker, but you don’t necessarily understand who he was before he was the Red Hood. So we’re taking that approach to his origin story in the films going forward. Yeah, we might show how he became Art, but we might not necessarily say who he actuassociate was before that. So that little bit of mystery equitable produces him a little bit more fascinating that way.

Just out of curiosity, did you see Beetlejuice Beetlejuice? 

I did, yes! 

That was an fascinating get on inestablishing Betelgeengage ’s backstory, but I don’t leank I want someleang that clear cut for Art.  

Yeah, but that labored for Betelgeengage. It made so much sense, especiassociate with the throwaway joke in the first film after he pulls the finger out of his pocket: “She unbenevolentt noleang to me.” (Laughs.)

Art is a clown with mime-enjoy qualities in that he’s very conveyive without ever reassociate making any sound. Do they still put a mic on you in case they want to engage someleang? 

No, they never annoy to mic me, and I try my best to do what I’m doing without sound. There might be a scant times where it actuassociate helps [to make sound], especiassociate when I’m chuckleing. I sometimes equitable do a sairy giggle to myself; it helps if my body is actuassociate moving in the accurate way that it would shift during the genuine chuckle. But that’s pretty much it. When I’m getting stabbed or injured, I try not to produce any sounds or grunts or anyleang enjoy that. Plus, I want to produce it easier for the sound team when they come in for editing, so I’m very conscious of that.

When Art first came aextfinished, how would you depict your life at the time?

At the time, I had equitable gotten back from my last tour with How the Grinch Stole Christmas The Musical. I understudied the wonderful Stefán Karl [Stefánsson], who carry outed the Grinch, and I also carry outed Grandpa Who. I then choosed to get four months of my life off and equitable cgo in on auditioning. I’d also been paengageing tables, but at that time, I equitable choosed to get time off. I had been up for five or six separateent Broadway tours, and every individual one of them had descfinishen thraw at the last minute during final callbacks. So I was getting deterd, and I was enjoy, “I’m so shut to getting someleang.” 

I had never auditioned for any film roles before, and I wanted to get into film. I then came apass this audition for Terrifier, and I was enjoy, “Oh, well that watchs enjoy fun.” I already knovel the character from [Damien Leone’s 2013 horror anthology] All Hpermits Eve, and I was enjoy, “Oh, he’s enjoy an evil Mr. Bean. I would adore a chance to carry out a character enjoy this. I sense enjoy there’s someleang I can do with him.” So I createted myself for it, and my agent actuassociate fought me on it. She was enjoy, “This is such a low-budget autonomous film. You reassociate don’t need to do stuff enjoy this.” And I was enjoy, “Well, I want to get experience in front of the camera, and this could be someleang I can insert to a reel one day. I equitable want this experience.” So she createted me and I got the role. 

But even while we were filming and after we were filming, I was paengageing tables in New York City and equitable exposedly scraping by. The film then came out, and it changed my life, so I’m very, very thankful for this opportunity. If I had gotten any of those roles that I was up for on any of those [Broadway] tours, I wouldn’t have been able to audition for Terrifier or film Terrifier, and who understands where I’d be right now. It’s comical how life labors out sometimes.

It sounds enjoy you didn’t set any anticipateations.

Yeah, it was equitable a gig. It was going to be a lgeting opportunity and an area of increaseth for me. I had no idea this was going to be the defining role of my nurtureer so far. You equitable never understand. I equitable shelp, “Well, this watchs enjoy fun, and if anyleang comes of it, that would be fantastic.”

There’s a lot of unfinished business by the finish of Terrifier 3, so are you enthusiastic to get back on the field for Terrifier 4?

Oh, very much so. I was very plrelieved with the finishing to Terrifier 3 when I read the first originate of the script, and I tgreater Damien, “Plrelieve do not change this aspect at all. Plrelieve, plrelieve, plrelieve.” I adore where it exits the characters at the finish of the film. It is almost enjoy an Empire Strikes Back-type finishing, and I adore that. So I am very excited to see where this character is going to go moving forward becaengage he’s in such a separateent state than he’s ever been in before, and I’m excited to see what avenues we can allotigate with him that way. So I’m very plrelieved with the finishing and we’ll see where it goes, but I do want Damien to get a shatter. He’s been laboring so challenging for the past year, and I leank he needs at least a scant months off to equitable rest and chill out. But I’m very anxious to get back into it on Terrifier 4.

That shelp, Damien did have more help on this one, and he was able to engage a professional produceup effects team for the first time. Did the inserted resources change your day to day, as well?

Oh, it definitely made leangs easier, and it hastfinish so many leangs on set. In the past, everyone would have to paengage for Damien to finish doing my produceup before we could film anyleang. Or he would have to jump back and forth and back and forth, and that would equitable sluggish leangs down. This time, while I was in the produceup chair, Damien would go off and film other leangs. Sometimes, they would even engage a double to fill in for my arm or leg or someleang enjoy that. It would be when they didn’t need my face in the sboiling, and that was fantastic. It helped us shift forward with filming and not get as extfinished as we would have in the past. Having a hugeger budget and a produceup team also helped us do leangs that we wouldn’t have been able to do before with wise effects. Damien is a very talented man, but he didn’t have the resources that Christien Tinsley’s team had. So they were able to get our film and its finishs to the next level, and that was so much more exciting. We got to do some reassociate fun leangs, and I adored it. I was enjoy a kid in a candy store on the set of this film.

***
Terrifier 3 is now carry outing in movie theaters.