Slasher fans, rejoice! The cornfields are no longer safe. RLJE Films and Shudder have dropped the brutal Red Band trailer for Clown in a Cornfield, introducing horror’s next nightmare: Frendo—a grinning, bloodthirsty menace who loves his friends… to death.
Based on the Bram Stoker Award-winning novel by Adam Cesare, this highly anticipated slasher adaptation is set to terrorize theaters nationwide on May 9th, 2025, following its world premiere at SXSW on March 10th. With Eli Craig of Tucker & Dale vs. Evil at the helm, expect a harrowing, savage, and pulse-pounding horror experience that blends slasher brutality with razor-sharp satire.
A New Horror Icon Is Born: Meet Frendo
Move over, Pennywise—there’s a new killer clown in town. Frendo is more than a masked murderer—he’s the embodiment of a town’s unraveling psyche. In the sleepy town of Kettle Springs, tensions run high after the collapse of its once-thriving Baypen Corn Syrup Factory. As old grudges fester and the town spirals into discord, a sinister figure emerges from the cornfields, ready to “cleanse” Kettle Springs in a storm of blood and mayhem.
Katie Douglas of Ginny & Georgia, Carson MacCormac of Shazam!, Aaron Abrams of Hannibal, Will Sasso of The Three Stooges, and Kevin Durand of Abigail star in this high-energy, blood-soaked thriller that promises to carve its way into slasher movie history.
A Franchise In The Making?
With Clown in a Cornfield already being called an “insanely fun action-horror-comedy”, could this be the birth of a new horror franchise? The film adapts the first book in Cesare’s trilogy, which includes Clown in a Cornfield 2: Frendo Lives and The Church of Frendo—with a fourth book on the way.
For now, all that we know if that Frendo is coming. And he’s not here to play nice. Nonetheless, watch the trailer above —if you dare—and get ready for the blood-soaked horror event of 2025. With that being said, Clown in a Cornfield slashes its way into theaters on May 9th, 2025.