Terrifier 3 Topping US Box Office Celebrated In Post Confirming “Every Studio” Declined Or Lowballed The Rights

Friday the 13th star turned entertaiment lawyer, Larry Zerner, reveals that every studio and major distributor either passed or tried to low ball Terrifier 3 in a post that celebrates the movie's box office success. The opening weekend of Terrifier 3 pumped the movie to No. 1 in North America ticket sells, concluding with $18.3 million. This is a huge start for a low-budget slasher film, surpassing Joker: Folie à Deux from the previous week.

Zerner detailed in a post on X that while the Terrifier 3 director offered studios in Hollywood to "acquire the rights," "most didn't bother" with some offering "an embarrassingly low amount of money" for all rights to seize control of the franchise. According to Zerner, who's friends with Damien Leone, the director "knew they had something special" and hung on to the rights. Now, they not only have "the #1 movie in the U.S., but they own and control all of the rights to the Terrifier franchise." Check out what Zerner posted below:

The Studios Didn't Believe in Terrifier

Close

Even major distributors and big studios can't predict a film's success, and this turns out to be true with Terrifier 3. The brutal film has more gore than the first two films combined. In the current climate, a film with so much blood and killing sequences runs a risk. Zerner's comment confirms that Terrifier 3 was passed by most studios.

The film's success also came as a surprise to what the studios and distributors expected, given that they didn't believe the film would perform well with audiences. With the popularization of streaming platforms and changes in moviegoers' behavior, movies slated for the big screen have risks. Zerner's comment seems to point out that the studios in the current climate are taking a conservative approach.

Our Take on Terrifier 3's Success

It's Bold & Controversial

Terrifier 3 has a shocking amount of gore and violence that is very rare to see in recent years. Many films in the horror genre are inclined to leave out certain disturbing details, especially when it comes to scenes that include children. Terrifier 3 challenges the cultural trend of "trigger warnings" and offers something no one has seen in years. It takes a bold approach to the villain's character studies and doesn't hold back.

The extreme violence in Terrifier 3 is treated in a way that shapes Art the Clown's character. The gore isn't there for the sole purpose of gore. It has everything to do with the theme and Art's killer origin. The audience wants a great movie, and how can a film be great when the creators are afraid to tell it?

Source: Larry Zerner/X