Early screenings of Terrifier 3 have sparked strong reactions from audiences, with some moviegoers walking out mid-film due to its extreme gore. Some viewers have even vomited or fainted.
To find out if it’s really that bad The River went along to see it and ask audience members what they thought. “I didn’t even want to finish watching the film, it was really gross – I basically wasted my money,” fumed Sarah, an audience member at a screening in West London.
We also watched as approximately 20 audience members rushed out of the theatre during a particularly graphic shower scene, where the clown gruesomely saws a couple to death.
Meshall S, another audience member said: “I love the Terrifier movies, but there’s too much blood.”
The Terrifier films, centre around the gruesome exploits of serial killer Art the Clown and have gained a reputation among audiences for their extreme violence and gore.
Directed by Damien Leone, Terrifier 3 has become a viral sensation, with social media flooded by posts from viewers claiming to have fainted or vomited during the screening.
An image posted on the film’s X account shows a notice on a cinema door, reads: “Warning! This film contains extreme violence and excessive gore. If you are feeling unwell, please find a member of staff. Staff trained in first aid are on site.”
While the idea of a film that could require first-aid might horrify most people, horror fans appear to relish the thought with enthusiasm. One person replied “I wanna see this even more now” while another wrote “Will there be barf bags?”.
The film currently holds a 7.1/10 rating on IMDb and a 94% score on Rotten Tomatoes, bolstered by positive reviews from horror festivals where it received widespread acclaim.
The Terrifier series has emerged as a major success in the independent horror genre, with its 2022 sequel grossing over $15 million worldwide from a budget of just $250,000.
In a bid to elevate the Terrifier slasher franchise to mainstream horror, director Leone revealed in an interview with Total Film, that he was approached by a major unnamed studio intending to reboot Terrifier.
However this opportunity came with one specific condition.
“They wanted to reboot it for a wider audience. That’s not what I was interested in. They would say, ‘It’s gotta be rated R, it can’t be as gory as you made it.’”
The American director added: “I knew they’d never let me shoot the first 10 minutes of what I wanted to do [in Terrifier 3]. So I thought, ‘Let’s just stay true to what this franchise is.”
For horror enthusiasts who appreciate blood, guts, and gore, Terrifier 3, featuring the return of Art the Clown, is set to be must-see.
Terrifier 3 was released in cinemas across the UK October 11.
Naomi Aldridge 
Orla Preston Hibbert 
Konstantinos Patas