Terrifier 3 age rating: How old do you need to be?

Terrifier 3 is the number one, must-see horror movie in America, so before you buy tickets, make sure you’re old enough by checking the film’s age rating and parents’ guide.

Although Terrifier 3 involves more kids than ever before, it’s anything but child-friendly. Hell, it’s barely even adult-friendly, with reports of audience members vomiting, passing out, or leaving the theater in disgust. 

Of course, this will be music to the ears of any horror movie lover. As Terrifier producer Phil Falcone told Dexerto, fans “won’t be disappointed” by Art the Clown’s darker tone. And there are plenty more horrifying kills to enjoy, which used more fake blood than The Passion of the Christ. 

All of this is to say, Damien Leone’s Terrifier 3, much like its predecessors, is not one to enjoy with the family. But how old do you have to be to watch it?

Terrifier 3 age rating explained

The reason why there’s some confusion over Terrifier 3’s age rating is because, well, it doesn’t have one. It’s unrated in the US, meaning that it hasn’t been assigned a rating such as G, PG, PG-13, R, and NC-17 by the Motion Picture Association (MPA).

New movies are typically rated based on their content, including violence, language, nudity, and other factors that could affect its suitability for different age groups. However, this is a completely voluntary process.

Terrifier 2 was also released as unrated due to its extreme violence and gore (IYKYK), as it can be difficult to secure an R rating – meaning children under 17 must be accompanied by an adult – without significant cuts. 

We saw this happen with In a Violent Nature too, with director Chris Nash telling Dexerto its unrated badge was likely due to the “unrelenting violence.” 

Similarly, we can expect plenty more where that came from in Terrifier 3, with Leone telling us that Art the Clown “might be the most disturbing he’s ever been.”

How old do you need to be to watch it?

Well, since it’s unrated, this very much depends on the discretion of the theaters playing it. But for the most part, the rules are anyone under 17 must be accompanied by an adult guardian. 

Lucasfilm/Cineverse

And all of them warn you to be prepared to show your ID when you’re there. The various cinema chains in the US abiding by these rules include AMC, Cinemark, and Regal.

However, just because you can bring your kids, doesn’t mean you should. Fans have been criticizing parents after spotting children in screenings across the country, believing they’ll be “traumatized” after seeing the extreme violence.

US Terrifier 3 fans are lucky

Although many US cinemas are following the 17+ rule, in the UK, the British Board of Film Classification have rated it 18, citing “strong gory violence and injury detail.”

France has also prohibited under-18s from seeing Terrifier 3, which is a significant move for the country given that this ban hasn’t been enforced since Saw 3 in 2006.

The Terrifier 3 distributors said in a statement, “We can only deplore this unexpected final decision, which will severely hamper the release of the film, eagerly awaited by tens of thousands of French viewers and scheduled for October 9 (and of course maintained).”

However, Leone doesn’t seem too worried – in fact, he’s proud of the move, writing “badge of honor” on X/Twitter. 

It also didn’t affect the movie, as it shot straight to number one in France despite the restrictions.

Do you need to watch the other Terrifier movies first?

It goes without saying that you don’t have to watch anything you don’t want to. But it’s highly recommended that you at least watch Terrifier 2 before Terrifier 3 – even by Leone himself. 

This is because the threequel continues the story of the sequel, with Art the Clown (David Howard Thornton) returning to terrorize Sienna (Lauren LaVera) and Jonathan (Elliott Fullam) alongside his new sidekick, Vicky (Samantha Scaffidi), who was also in the first Terrifier.

Signature Entertainment

Sienna’s back in Terrifier 3

When SlashFilm asked Leone whether fans should watch the other Terrifier flicks first, he replied, “No, especially you could probably get away with not seeing Terrifier 1, but I would highly recommend you see Terrifier 2.”

Terrifier 3 could have turned out very differently, if the major studios had anything to do with it. He told the outlet that following the sequel’s success, he sat down “with Hollywood studios because they were all interested in the formula.”

“Some of them really wanted to make Terrifier 3, but they wanted to sort of reboot it,” he said. “And kind of ignore what I did with part two and make it more accessible for a mainstream audience. 

“I just knew that that was the wrong decision. And I knew that we set up something special with part two and characters that are really important to this franchise, and we couldn’t just neglect them and start over.”

So, the filmmaker and his crew decided to avoid this altogether and not go with a major studio. “There’s a bigger board at play here and characters that I want to flesh out,” he continued. “So it is important that you see part two.”

With Terrifier 3 in cinemas now, find out how to how to watch the Terrifier movies in order, our ranking of the Terrifier kills, and why Terrifier 4 should be the final Art the Clown movie. If you’re brave, you can also find out why this is the most horrifying scene in Terrifier 3.