According to director/screenwriter Damien Leone, Terrifier 4 will finally reveal some origin details for Art the Clown but don't expect a linear explanation.
Speaking with Collider, Leone followed up on an earlier, Instagram birthday post, where he confirmed that he'll be explaining Art's backstory in the fourth and final Terrifier film. Howver, he'll be taking a David Lynch-esque approach.
Previously, Leone wrote on Instagram, "I might as well take advantage of this day and give all of the Terrifier fans a little present in return - The script for Terrifier 4 is underway and it is shaping up to be the most epic, horrifying, thrilling, emotional, and satisfying conclusion to the Terrifier saga. I’ve personally never been so excited to see one of my own scripts translate to the screen like this one. P.S. I will finally reveal Art’s origin in this entry."
Now, he tells Collider, that he won't be laying everything out in a neat and tidy fashion. Instead, he's going to take the David Lynch approach by feeding the audience bits and pieces and letting them connect the dots.
Said Leone, "Once I wrote Part 2, I decided to really start telling the story. I wanted to tell it almost in a Lynchian way. I could never be on the same level as David Lynch. He’s one of my heroes. But I love the way he tells stories, and they’re very abstract. He doesn’t give you answers. If he ever tried to articulate, it would trivialize and diminish the beauty of what he’s done as an artist. His voice is his work. He’s not supposed to just tell you what he did."
Leone also remarked, "...I think a lot of people don’t realize the reason he works so well is because of the mystique. If you pull the curtain back too far, and you lose that mystique, it’s over. You’re not supposed to see the wizard behind the curtain. It’s almost always a disappointment."
Lynch was infamous for surreal imagery and fragmented narratives that led the audience to draw its own conclusions. This was particularly evident in his work on Twin Peaks.
Art the Clown started out as a recurring character in a series of shorts from Leone and the anthology series, All Hallows' Eve (2013). From there, the character was spun out into his own film series, starting with Terrifier (2016), Terrifier 2 (2022), and Terrifier 3 (2024).
Known for their sadistic gore, the films are made on incredibly modest budgets, with each installment performing better than the last at the box office. For instance, Terrifier 3, filmed on a $2 million production budget and grossed $90.3 million at the box office.
Terrifier 4 is currently without a release date but is in development and expected to hit theaters sometime in 2026.