Problematic clowns have been a leading subgenre in horror cinema over the past decade, notably with the success of the ‘It’ and ‘Terrifier’ series. But ‘Clown in a Cornfiled’ stands out amongst its contemporaries in part over the relatable generational divide that the story focuses on. The new movie utilizes the horror genre to tell an equally funny and frightening story that addresses the differences between parents and their teen children in the current day.

RLJE Films and Shudder are releasing the feature exclusively in theaters today, Friday, May 9. The dark comedy was co-written and directed by ‘Tucker & Dale vs. Evil’ filmmaker, Eli Craig. He based ‘Clown in a Cornfield’s script on the 2020 novel of the same name by Adam Cesare. The new movie stars Katie Douglas, Kevin Durand, Aaron Abrams, Carson MacCormac, Cassandra Potenza, Verity Marks, Vincent Muller and Alexandre Martin Deakin.

The satirical comedy held its New York premiere on Tuesday, April 29. Before the screening, several of ‘Clown in a Cornfield’s filmmakers and actors, including Craig, Cesare and Douglas, generously took the time to talk about making the project during red carpet interviews.

Craig stopped on the red carpet to talk about making the movie first. He started off by sharing that he was drawn to helm the feature in part because he relates to the story’s focus on the modern-day generational divide.

“There is such a divide withing our culture between the generations. I’m Gen X, as are the old folks in this movie. I think we have a feeling that the Gen Z kids are never paying attention and are always on their phone,” the filmmaker noted.

“We always wonder how this generation is going to function in real life. They’re always catered to, and everything’s easy. If they want to find an answer to a question, they can easily search for it on their phones. So we often look at them with a sense of disregard,” Craig also shared.

“Then when they think about us as the older generation, they thumb their noses at us. They really don’t listen to us about anything. They tell us that they’re more intelligent than we give them credit for,” the director continued.

“They tell us that they’re plugged into what’s happening in the world, and we’re sophisticated. They also tell us that they understand so much more than they’re given credit for,” Craig also noted.

So ‘Clowns in a Cornfield’ is “ultimately about what happens when people aren’t listening to each other. The adults aren’t listening to the kids in this movie at all, and vide versa. So that creates this great cataclysm of conflict that erupts in bloodshed,” the filmmaker revealed. “So there’s a lot of social satire in this story.”

Craig also shared how he approached adapting the book into the film. “I think the thing that attracted me to the book in the first place are the major shifts in the script that reset the story. I won’t totally go into those details because they’re spoilers,” he admitted.

“But I will say that I wanted to be true to the theme of the book’s story. I think Adam created this unbelievable villain in Friendo. So I thought, if I can design his mask right, and I can make Friendo the icon that I had while I was growing up, that would be great,” the helmer revealed.

Craig also pointed out that “We don’t really have slasher icons that aren’t remakes right now. So I was looking at these old slasher horror movies for inspiration for this movie. Jason (from the ‘Friday the 13th’ franchise) was so disturbing to me because his mask, in all of it’s simplicity, is probably the best mask that’s ever been made.

“So with our film, I wanted to bring some of that in. I also making a slasher movie in a 2025 way with Gen Z going through it, and have it not be a sequel,” the director continued.

“But I also wanted to honor the book at the same time. Adam wrote a fun action book with real characters that you could see existing in the world today,” Craig added.

The filmmaker also divulged how Friendo compares to other noteworthy clowns in the horror genre, including Pennywise and Art the Clown. “Friendo is a grounded, working-class slasher killer. He has a human, fallible quality to him that makes him very menacing, but incredibly flawed, as well. So he rides the line of being a menacing killer and entertaining.”

Douglas generously took the time to stop for an interview on the red carpet next. She shared that after she read the script for the movie, she was immediately interested in playing Quinn. She noted that from the beginning of the story, the protagonist “just feels like a normal girl. She’s relatable and just trying to fit in. She can also be kind of awkward and shy. She’s thrown into a situation where she’s tasked with putting her bravery first. I like the overall arc she takes throughout the story.”

The actress embraced the label of being a final girl in the film. Quinn has “one line at the end of the movie where she takes back her power. I shot that scene at the end of the shoot. It’s just so full of rage. It’s like she’s saying “F*ck you” to the villains and what they represent. That scene was the most rewarding to me.”

Douglas also appreciates the fact that the script is an homage to classic slasher horror movies and the final girls that made them so beloved. “There are so many homages in the movie itself. There’s an element of ‘Texas Chain Saw Massacre’ in this movie. I was so mesmerized by the performances, especially by Marilyn Burns (who played final girl Sally Hardesty). The movie peeled her back completely, especially by the daunting idea of being cut up by a chainsaw, which we also have in our movie.”

While she enjoys being classified as a new iconic final girl, the actress also admitted that at times, leading ‘Clown in a Cornfield’ was a bit “nerve-wracking. Since it’s based on a book, you want to be respectful of that and stay true to what was originally written.

“But at the end of the day, everyone had a different idea of what she was going to be and look like. So, Eli and I decided that I was going to bring a lot of myself to the role and hope people like it!,” Douglas also revealed.

“But I think understanding the tone and the type of movie you’re making is so important. We found a lot of that on the day. That’s why the movie has such a specific, very unique tone. So we were just playing,” the actress added.

Cesare also stopped to talk about his part in adapting his novel for the screen on the red carpet. He shared his appreciation that the book was turned into a feature film, five years after the novel’s release. “It’s a cool feeling because the film is a pretty faithful adaptation. At the same time, Eli Craig really added his own ideas in the movie. I wanted his perspective and sense of humor to also exist in the movie. So the adaptation’s the best of both worlds.”

When the movie was initially being conceived, the writer was happy with Craig signing on to direct the feature. “I’ve been a fan of Eli’s work for 15 years now. ‘Tucker & Dale vs. Evil’ had such great festival buzz, so I was there on day one buying that DVD at Best Buy. So to work with him now on this film is great. He was a great pick!”