The year was 2011. An up-and-coming writer/director named Damien Leone had been a fan of horror movies his entire life. He grew up dreaming of creating a horror film of his own. But, after growing up with the likes of Michael Myers, Freddy Krueger, and Jason Vorhees, Leon knew that the easiest way to make a successful horror movie was to create a terrifying villain.

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Thus, Art the Clown was born.

Art, a silent but deadly clown, painted up in black and white first appeared in Leon's short film, titled Terrifier. This was made, presumably, to show producers what exactly Leon had in mind for the character.

And he was a hit.

Leon was able to create his first full length feature, All Hallows' Eve, which served as the first major reveal of Art the Clown. All Hallows' Eve was an anthology film that quickly became a cult classic, one that many people throw into their Halloween movie rotation right alongside Halloween and Trick 'r Treat.

Fans fell in love with Art the Clown; so much so that Leon brought him back for his very own movie - 2016's Terrifier.

Much like All Hallows' Eve, Terrifier was gory, grotesque, extremely violent, and, well, kinda funny. Like, Art literally sawed a girl in half. But like, not hamburger style; hot dog style. If you know what we mean.

Terrifier was also a hit and now, 6 years later, Art the Clown is back one more time and Casper can see him on the big screen.

"Cinedigm, SCREAMBOX, and Bloody Disgusting took a huge swing here and decided to not only put Damien Leone‘s new slasher epic in theaters nationwide, but also do so UNCUT," Brad Miska, one of the film's producers wrote on Bloody Disgusting. "Yes, this is the director’s true, untouched vision that is now slicing up theaters across the country – in over 800 locations beginning tonight!

"This truly was a huge risk for us, but we absolutely love and believe in this movie. We put our heart and soul into bringing it to you and hope you are able to help support it. Terrifier 2 is an indie film going up against the horror titans. And there’s room for all of it!"

Damien Leon said that he was originally surprised that the film would be released in theaters. But he put to bed any doubts that the movie would be sanitized so as to appeal to a broader audience.

“The fact that this is getting a pretty good theatrical release and it’s being released, not rated, is unprecedented," Leon told Bloody Disgusting. "They keep saying, ‘Oh, since you’re putting this in the movie theaters, it has to be watered down. It can’t be like the first one.’ No, I assure you, it might be worse. It’s certainly on the same level; it might be worse. And you could see this in theaters, so that’s going to be wild. That’s exciting.”

Terrifier 2 is showing October 6, 7, and 8 at Studio City Mesa. Times vary depending on the day.

Viewer discretion is most definitely advised, as this film is unrated. It's not a film for children or viewers who are easily frightened. Tickets can be purchased here. If you're looking for a seriously spooky movie to start the Halloween season off right, you could do no better than Terrifier 2. It's scary. It's violent. It's, well, art.

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