Insane Clown Posse: has horror impacted the once noble art of clowning?

A big red nose, a wild wig, and a gaping grin stretching from ear to ear. A clown’s unique appearance is designed to spread joy and warm the hearts of many, but it isn’t balm to the soul for all of us. Research by the University of South Wales of nearly 1,000 adult participants from 64 countries found that more than half were scared of clowns. Los Angeles-based drag clown, screenwriter, and author Jester Le Roux notes the appearance of clowns as a part of their scare factor: “While I know some of the sweetest clowns in the world, the archetypal clown is extremely creepy. I’ve had people run from me on the street because the pale, exaggerated features of a clown scratch that part of our brain that freaks out at the uncanny valley.” Similarly, the clown’s erratic nature and ability to transform from victim to agitator in a scene so fluidly makes us feel uneasy in their presence. Hallie Garcia, who has worked as a party clown and therapeutic hospital clown, stated: “Clowns can be unpredictable. Even in a fun setting, where everyone is enjoying entertainment from a clown, you might not know what will happen next – that unpredictability can be frightening and cause fear or anxiety.”

Some of the earliest documented jesters were recorded in ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome, with the first depiction of the evil clown in film tracing back to 1924’s He Who Gets Slapped, in which scientist Paul Beaumont becomes a clown after patron Baron Regnard steals his job and wife. In the 1940s, the image of the evil clown with a white face, gaping grin, and maniacal tendencies was popularised in the DC Comics Batman series with The Joker, who first hit the big screen in the 1966 version of The Batman played by Cesar Romero before going on to be played by the likes of Jack Nicholson, Mark Hamill, Heath Ledger and Joaquin Phoenix. The 1976 Canadian horror movie The Clown Murders is arguably the first traditional clown horror movie, with four friends dressing up like clowns on Halloween to kidnap a businessman’s wife.

The crimes of notorious serial killer John Wayne Gacy have been cited as a catalyst for the boom of evil clown films that followed in the 1980s, following his arrest in 1978 for the rape and murder of at least 33 young men and boys. He became known as The Killer Clown due to his previous public performances as a clown, though he is not thought to have committed any offences while in costume. Four years after Gacy’s capture, Poltergeist was released, featuring the iconic moment youngster Robbie (Oliver Robbins) is attacked by his possessed clown doll while the remaining spirits kidnap his sister Carol Anne (Heather O’Rourke). In 1988, Killer Klowns from Outer Space was released, featuring aliens disguised as clowns who embark on a bloody rampage in a small American Town – less than a year passed before Clownhouse was released, featuring escaped mental patients posing as circus clowns to wreak havoc on a small community. In the wake of Gacy’s horrifying crimes, the evil clown subgenre took a more brutal, violent turn in which the antagonists kill for pleasure.

The 1990s began with the most iconic depiction of an evil clown: It, an adaptation of Stephen King’s 1986 novel featuring Pennywise the Dancing Clown. Pennywise – an alien who takes on the form of a clown – torments the town of Derry, Maine every 27 years, preying on the town’s children. King himself chose a clown as the alien’s preferred identity as he found clowns to be something many were scared of. A 2022 research paper from the University of Leeds proposed there was an increase in cases of coulrophobia following It’s release, while the World Clown Association (WCA) blamed the original film for ruining the reputation of clowns ahead of Andrés Muschietti’s 2017 remake. The ’90s also saw the release of Spawn, Shakes the Clown, and The Clown At Midnight all featuring sadistic clown antagonists, while Charles Band’s Killjoy and Captain Spaulding in Rob Zombie’s House of 1000 Corpses and its sequel The Devil’s Rejects quickly followed in the noughties.

The evil clown became less humanoid and more monstrous with supernatural and demonic origins in the 2010s, with Conor McMahon’s 2012 comedy horror Stitches following a clown who comes back from the dead to take revenge on the kids who caused his death. Yet it was Damien Leone’s All Hallows’ Eve, released in 2013, that introduced the world to a brand new horror legend: Art the Clown. The subsequent Terrifier franchise – containing Terrifier, Terrifier 2, and the upcoming Terrifier 3 – expanded on Art’s mythology and continued to develop his exaggerated personality, in which he switches from a camp, comedic entity to a hacking, slashing, gore-covered monster who loves nothing more than to mutilate the residents of Miles County.

But does all this negative press come at a cost to real-life clowns? Steven Spielberg’s blockbuster Jaws is said to have spawned the tragedy known as ‘The Jaws effect’, in which populations of sharks declined by 70% and one in three species are at threat of extinction following the release of the film and the fear it sparked. Stephen Follows found that 20% of clown movies released in the 2000s were horror movies, rising to 45% in the 2010s. At the same time, the BBC reported in 2016 that World Clown Association membership numbers had fallen by almost a third over the past 10 years, from about 3,500 to 2,500. In the same year, reported incidents of people dressed as evil clowns appearing in random public locations in the United States, Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom saw more bad press levied toward clowns.

However,  Bob Bowker, aka Bibbledy Bob, of Clowns International says the existence of horror films has not negatively affected clowns. “The target audience for an average clown doing kids’ parties is under 10 years old, and the audience who go to see films such as It are clearly over 18,” he said. Similarly, Le Roux added: “Clowns have adapted, incorporating the tools learned in other areas of their lives. The fear of clowns has been a necessary catalyst for many clowns, pushing the art form into new realms as we all apply principles of clown to our own art and objectives.”

Rather than destroying the art of clowning, their depiction in horror has expanded the art form as scare attractions bring in thousands of patrons looking for a thrill. Pongo Joe, a seasoned haunt actor, tells us: “Clown horror films have had a significant influence on our culture, especially in how a haunted attraction is shaped. Clowns have become so popular at haunted houses because they resonate with people in different ways. Clowns definitely scare people, but they also make you laugh. A clown is a catch-all bit of entertainment and fits right in with the live atmosphere of a haunted attraction. Clowns conjure feelings of being terrified, amused and mystified.”

So even with the rise of killer clowns on the big screen, clowning has remained a valued and revered form of artistry, with both its traditional form and horror stylings able to coexist and thrive. And popularity is at an all-time high with the hype surrounding Terrifier 3’s release and thousands of scare attractions recorded worldwide, while current professional clown numbers reportedly stand at an estimated 50,000 to 100,000 (per Vault.com). As Le Roux summarises: “Even if people fear clowns, they can’t help but be fascinated with the way we defy human convention and decorum.”