Skip to content

David Howard Thornton

David Howard Thornton

7 movies on Netflix

Biography

David Howard Thornton is an American actor who became associated with the Terrifier franchise through his portrayal of Art the Clown. Born in Huntsville, Alabama, he grew up with parents who encouraged his acting ambitions and got his first stage experience as a child at Fantasy Playhouse Children's Theatre. After studying elementary education at the University of Montevallo, he toured as an understudy to Stefán Karl Stefánsson in Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical. He supplied voices for film, anime, television, and video games, and played the Joker in the fan series Nightwing: Escalation before appearing in Gotham. His first feature-length appearance as Art the Clown came in Terrifier (2018), which became a cult classic and earned him a Fangoria Chainsaw Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. He returned in Terrifier 2 (2022), a critical and box office hit, and Terrifier 3 (2024), and also appeared in The Mean One (2022), Stream (2024), and Screamboat (2025).

46years old

Turns 47 on November 30in 19 days

Born November 30, 1979Huntsville
Star sign: SagittariusThe sign runs November 22 to December 21

Movie Career

Films: 7
Career span: 7 years2018 to 2025

Genres

Horror100%, 7 films
Action14%, 1 film
Comedy14%, 1 film
Thriller14%, 1 film

First and latest

Share

Did you know?!

Early training
Thornton served as the understudy for actor Stefán Karl Stefánsson on the tour of Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical. Thornton said Stefán Karl strongly shaped his acting style and physical comedy.

David Howard Thornton movies on Netflix

Jokers Wild2025IMDb rating 6.5as Jack
Screamboat2025IMDb rating 4.1as Screamboat Willie
Stream2024IMDb rating 5.6as Player 2
Terrifier 32024IMDb rating 6.2as Art the Clown
Terrifier 22022IMDb rating 6.0as Art the Clown
The Mean One2022IMDb rating 4.0as The Mean One
Terrifier2018IMDb rating 5.5as Art the Clown

Best known for

The films on Netflix they are best known for, with the part played in each.

Terrifier2018 Horroras Art the Clown
IMDb rating 5.598K votes
Terrifier 22022 Horroras Art the Clown
IMDb rating 6.085K votes
Terrifier 32024as Art the Clown
IMDb rating 6.265K votes
Screamboat2025as Screamboat Willie
IMDb rating 4.14.5K votes
The Mean One2022as The Mean One
IMDb rating 4.03.3K votes
Stream2024as Player 2
IMDb rating 5.611K votes
Jokers Wild2025as Jack
IMDb rating 6.5254 votes

Most often with

Damien Leone directed three of these films, Steven LaMorte two. Two actors appear in three of them each. Pick a number on the chart or a name in the list to see the films they share.

Michael Leavy

Samantha Scaffidi

Chris Jericho

Charles Edwin Powell

Lauren LaVera

Kailey HymanDamien LeoneDirector, 3 films Steven LaMorteDirector, 2 films

Films together

Michael Leavy3 films together, 2018 to 2025
Michael Leavy's page
- Screamboat2025IMDb rating 4.1Thornton as Screamboat WillieLeavy as Deckhand Bert Brunswick
- Stream2024IMDb rating 5.6Thornton as Player 2Leavy as Brad
- Terrifier2018IMDb rating 5.5Thornton as Art the ClownLeavy as Exterminator #2
Samantha Scaffidi3 films together, 2018 to 2024
Samantha Scaffidi's page
- Terrifier 32024IMDb rating 6.2Thornton as Art the ClownScaffidi as Victoria Heyes
- Terrifier 22022IMDb rating 6.0Thornton as Art the ClownScaffidi as Victoria Heyes
- Terrifier2018IMDb rating 5.5Thornton as Art the ClownScaffidi as Victoria Heyes
Chris Jericho2 films together, 2022 to 2024
Chris Jericho's page
- Terrifier 32024IMDb rating 6.2Thornton as Art the ClownJericho as Burke
- Terrifier 22022IMDb rating 6.0Thornton as Art the ClownJericho as Burke
Charles Edwin Powell2 films together, 2024 to 2025
Charles Edwin Powell's page
- Screamboat2025IMDb rating 4.1Thornton as Screamboat WilliePowell as Borough President Molinari
- Stream2024IMDb rating 5.6Thornton as Player 2Powell as Roy Keenan
Lauren LaVera2 films together, 2022 to 2024
Lauren LaVera's page
- Terrifier 32024IMDb rating 6.2Thornton as Art the ClownLaVera as Sienna Shaw
- Terrifier 22022IMDb rating 6.0Thornton as Art the ClownLaVera as Sienna Shaw
Kailey Hyman2 films together, 2022 to 2025
Kailey Hyman's page
- Screamboat2025IMDb rating 4.1Thornton as Screamboat WillieHyman as Cindi
- Terrifier 22022IMDb rating 6.0Thornton as Art the ClownHyman as Brooke
Damien LeoneDirector, 3 films, 2018 to 2024
All films by Damien Leone
- Terrifier 32024IMDb rating 6.2Thornton as Art the Clown
- Terrifier 22022IMDb rating 6.0Thornton as Art the Clown
- Terrifier2018IMDb rating 5.5Thornton as Art the Clown
Steven LaMorteDirector, 2 films, 2022 to 2025
All films by Steven LaMorte
- Screamboat2025IMDb rating 4.1Thornton as Screamboat Willie
- The Mean One2022IMDb rating 4.0Thornton as The Mean One
Also two films together2 more actors
- Amy SchumacherScreamboat (2025) and The Mean One (2022)
- Elliott FullamTerrifier 3 (2024) and Terrifier 2 (2022)
When several people share the same number of films, the ones with the most films on Netflix are in the chart.

Online

Official profiles and reference pages.