The Terrifier film franchise has quickly turned its central antagonist, Art the Clown, into a worldwide horror icon. As such, fans are eager to see Art return for Terrifier 3, and the first reactions are quite what you’d expect. In fact, the sequel has even been described as “sickening, depraved, and blasphemous” which is pretty on brand for this gruesome series.
As you can see below, the reactions were shared by Fantastic Fest attendees on the social media platform X. The film had its world premiere at the festival, and in addition to the more extreme descriptions of the 2024 follow-up, responses were also quite positive.
While it doesn’t water itself down from previous entries, the film does much more than bring back the familiar blood and gore that fans have become accustomed to. In fact, some descriptions claim that the film “goes 54 steps further” and that it pushes “the lore and characters forward in interesting ways.” Some have even called it their favorite installment yet.
Here are some of the Fantastic Fest reactions to Terrifier 3 that have been shared so far:
Just got out of Terrifier 3. WOW, if you thought the Terrifier team couldn’t go further after part two, you’d be dead wrong. Bloody and blasphemous in all the right ways. #Terrifier3 #FantasticFest
— Jacob Harper @ Fantastic Fest (@JacobAtTheMovie) September 20, 2024
#terrifier3 Builds out the lore by answering questions raised in 2 & teases more
It doesn’t just rehash 2. The characters were changed by the previous film. The tone is different. It’s meaner and a less playful (there’s still dark humor).
Some people will miss the tone of 2 pic.twitter.com/MOUL3jypNS
— Sean Chandler @ Fantastic Fest (@kirkneverdied) September 20, 2024
TERRIFIER 3 is truly evil. And I mean that in the best possible way.
Grindhouse beyond Grindhouse. Truly sickening practical effects mixed with a lore that is getting more and more intricate.
I don’t know how Damien Leone tops this. Lauren LaVera THEE final girl.
— James Preston Poole @ Fantastic Fest (@JamesPPoole) September 20, 2024
#Terrifier3 goes there and then goes 54 steps further. An absolute splatter fest of unseen proportions. Shower scene that will go down in history. Lauren LaVera is such a great lead. Lots of twisted and neat toe dips into the lore, getting very HELLRAISER up in here. Damn. 🤡 pic.twitter.com/giNCbXZEtx
— Noah Levine (@ZProductionz) September 20, 2024
#Terrifier3 is easily my favorite of the series so far, but it wouldn’t be what it is without the first two films. The story continues from the second movie, adding a depth that only comes from building on what came before—it’s way more than just another gore fest. Art is sillier… pic.twitter.com/WCVb9fpo4E
— Jones Vibes (@jonesvibesonly) September 20, 2024
Terrifier 3 was, without question, the most disgusting, gory, vile thing I’ve ever seen.
I kind of enjoyed it? pic.twitter.com/4GLv9JAIpk
— Germain Lussier (@GermainLussier) September 20, 2024
It’s quite impressive to see that director Damien Leone has managed to continually appeal to fans of Art the Clown with so many different iterations. Additionally, his ability to incrementally expand the franchise’s lore with each installment almost guarantees numerous more appearances from Art the Clown in the future. If Terrifier 3 continues to find success with audiences, then we can likely expect Art’s new role as a modern icon to only grow from here.
Stay tuned to ScreenGeek for any additional Terrifier franchise updates as we have them. As for now, it’s quite exciting to see that Terrifier 3 will live up to the bloody standards set by its predecessors. Fortunately, fans will only have to wait a few more months to see the film outside of its Fantastic Fest premiere.