David Howard Thornton

David Howard Thornton (born November 30, 1979) is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Art the Clown in the Terrifier film series.

Early life and education Thornton grew up in Huntsville, Alabama, and his parents were a NASA engineer and a special education teacher. His parents encouraged him to follow his goal of becoming an actor. As a child he first appeared on stage in a production by the local drama company Fantasy Playhouse Children's Theatre.

Career Early work Thornton was the understudy of actor Stefán Karl Stefánsson when they toured for Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical. Thornton has stated that Stefán Karl was a big influence on his physical comedy and acting style. In 2015, he provided additional voices for Miss Hokusai. From 2016 to 2017, he appeared as the Joker in the fan-made Web series Nightwing: Escalation and later went on to appear in Gotham, both projects that included characters by DC Comics. In 2022, Thornton reprised the role of Art the Clown in Terrifier 2. Terrifier 2 was well received by critics and a hit at the box office, grossing more than $15 million on a $250,000 budget. Also in 2022, Thornton starred as the titular character in a horror retelling of How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, in The Mean One.

Thornton reprised the role of Art the Clown in the 2023 Peacock series Bupkis and Terrifier 3 in October 2024. He appeared as Player 2 in the 2024 film Stream and as a Mickey Mouse horror pastiche in the 2025 film Screamboat. He is set to appear as Shark Bait Zombie in the upcoming film Night of the Living Dead II.

Personal life In a 2023 interview, Thornton spoke about discovering he is autistic as an adult. On April 18, 2026, Thornton became engaged to his girlfriend Jada Christie Eggen of Sioux Falls, SD after proposing at Huntsville Expo while dressed as Art the Clown.

Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes Reference(s) 2015 Miss Hokusai Additional Voices Voice 2016 Terrifier Art the Clown 2019 The Exigency Bumbo Voice 2025 Jokers Wild The Joker Fan filmShort film Screamboat Steamboat Willie Night of the Living Dead II Shark Bait Zombie Terrifier 4 Art the Clown Stream 2: Sudden Death Player 2 Hollywoods Long Nail Nelly The Autopsy of Albert Kemper Albert Kemper

Television Year Title Role Notes Reference(s) 2017 Gotham Orderly Episode: "A Dark Knight: The Blade's Path"

Podcasts and web series Year Title Role Notes Reference(s) 2016–2017 Nightwing: Escalation The Joker 6 episodes

Awards and nominations Year Award Category Nominated work Result Reference 2019 Fangoria Chainsaw Awards Best Supporting Actor Terrifier