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Did You Ever Spot the Killer Klowns in ‘Ernest Scared Stupid’?!

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Hey Vern, it’s the Killer Klowns from Outer Space.

The road to Halloween isn’t just about watching as many horror movies as possible, but rather embracing anything and everything that is, for lack of a better word, Halloweeny. From eating ALL the pumpkin treats to revisiting the Roseanne Halloween episodes, there are many things that I just need to do each year to get myself in the proper spirit, and I’m surely not alone when I say that watching the 1991 comedy gem Ernest Scared Stupid is one of those things.

Released on October 11th of that year, Ernest Scared Stupid is essentially Ernest P. Worrell’s Halloween special, and in it the lovable idiot summons forth an ancient troll when he messes around with a tree it had been contained in; in Ernest’s defense, he was just trying to help a group of local kids create the ultimate Halloween haunted house. The diminutive troll, once freed from his prison, begins collecting children and quite literally turning them into wooden dolls, and once he acquires five of them, he’s able to unleash an army of trolls to do his bidding and, well, take over the world and stuff.

Trolls, man. Aren’t they just the worst?

The most noteworthy aspect of Ernest Scared Stupid is undoubtedly the creature effects, which came courtesy of the Chiodo Brothers. The brothers were tasked with not just creating the main troll but also his pint-sized army of creatures, and like always, they knocked the gig totally out of the park. Without their incredible effects work, I’m honestly not sure I’d revisit Ernest’s Halloween hijinks around this time each year, and I say that with all due respect to the late Jim Varney.

But what makes the trolls extra special is that some of them are actually Klowns!

Ernest Scared Stupid came out just three years after Killer Klowns from Outer Space, which was of course the Chiodo Brothers’ masterpiece. They designed the various Klowns in the film, in addition to writing and directing, and two of those Klowns actually ended up being re-purposed, believe it or not, for Ernest Scared Stupid. During the 1991 film’s most memorable sequence, wherein all the newly-spawned trolls are running wild, slightly modified versions of two masks the Chiodos whipped up for Killer Klowns are worn by the performers playing trolls, and we’ve screen-grabbed them for you below – alongside their Klown counterparts!

klowns 1 klowns 3

klowns 2 klowns 4

As you can see, the noses were changed and the masks completely repainted, but other than those slight alterations, they’re immediately recognizable as the same masks used in Killer Klowns from Outer Space. In all likelihood, it was less an homage on the part of the Chiodo Brothers and more a side effect of the budget they were provided with; after all, simply reusing existing materials from their workshop was a pretty smart way to bulk up the troll army.

Another fun connection between Killer Klowns and Ernest Scared Stupid is the manner in which the trolls die. After being squirted with milk, they disappear into thin air after a brief light show spectacular, which is pretty much, aside from the whole milk thing, exactly how the Klowns die!

I leave you with a behind-the-scenes shot from Ernest Scared Stupid, which shows one of the Chiodo Brothers posing with the various troll masks. The two masks to the far left on the second row are the Klowns that were given a second life as trolls.

Pretty cool, huh?!

scared stupid

Writer in the horror community since 2008. Editor in Chief of Bloody Disgusting. Owns Eli Roth's prop corpse from Piranha 3D. Has four awesome cats. Still plays with toys.

Editorials

‘Leprechaun Returns’ – The Charm of the Franchise’s Legacy Sequel

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leprechaun returns

The erratic Leprechaun franchise is not known for sticking with a single concept for too long. The namesake (originally played by Warwick Davis) has gone to L.A., Las Vegas, space, and the ‘hood (not once but twice). And after an eleven-year holiday since the Davis era ended, the character received a drastic makeover in a now-unmentionable reboot. The critical failure of said film would have implied it was time to pack away the green top hat and shillelagh, and say goodbye to the nefarious imp. Instead, the Leprechaun series tried its luck again.

The general consensus for the Leprechaun films was never positive, and the darker yet blander Leprechaun: Origins certainly did not sway opinions. Just because the 2014 installment took itself seriously did not mean viewers would. After all, creator Mark Jones conceived a gruesome horror-comedy back in the early nineties, and that format is what was expected of any future ventures. So as horror legacy sequels (“legacyquels”) became more common in the 2010s, Leprechaun Returns followed suit while also going back to what made the ‘93 film work. This eighth entry echoed Halloween (2018) by ignoring all the previous sequels as well as being a direct continuation of the original. Even ardent fans can surely understand the decision to wipe the slate clean, so to speak.

Leprechaun Returns “continued the [franchise’s] trend of not being consistent by deciding to be consistent.” The retconning of Steven Kostanski and Suzanne Keilly’s film was met with little to no pushback from the fandom, who had already become accustomed to seeing something new and different with every chapter. Only now the “new and different” was familiar. With the severe route of Origins a mere speck in the rearview mirror, director Kotanski implemented a “back to basics” approach that garnered better reception than Zach Lipovsky’s own undertaking. The one-two punch of preposterous humor and grisly horror was in full force again.

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Pictured: Linden Porco as The Leprechaun in Leprechaun Returns.

With Warwick Davis sitting this film out — his own choice — there was the foremost challenge of finding his replacement. Returns found Davis’ successor in Linden Porco, who admirably filled those blood-stained, buckled shoes. And what would a legacy sequel be without a returning character? Jennifer Aniston obviously did not reprise her final girl role of Tory Redding. So, the film did the next best thing and fetched another of Lubdan’s past victims: Ozzie, the likable oaf played by Mark Holton. Returns also created an extension of Tory’s character by giving her a teenage daughter, Lila (Taylor Spreitler).

It has been twenty-five years since the events of the ‘93 film. The incident is unknown to all but its survivors. Interested in her late mother’s history there in Devil’s Lake, North Dakota, Lila transferred to the local university and pledged a sorority — really the only one on campus — whose few members now reside in Tory Redding’s old home. The farmhouse-turned-sorority-house is still a work in progress; Lila’s fellow Alpha Epsilon sisters were in the midst of renovating the place when a ghost of the past found its way into the present.

The Psycho Goreman and The Void director’s penchant for visceral special effects is noted early on as the Leprechaun tears not only into the modern age, but also through poor Ozzie’s abdomen. The portal from 1993 to 2018 is soaked with blood and guts as the Leprechaun forces his way into the story. Davis’ iconic depiction of the wee antagonist is missed, however, Linden Porco is not simply keeping the seat warm in case his predecessor ever resumes the part. His enthusiastic performance is accentuated by a rotten-looking mug that adds to his innate menace.

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Pictured: Taylor Spreitler, Pepi Sonuga, and Sai Bennett as Lila, Katie and Rose in Leprechaun Returns.

The obligatory fodder is mostly young this time around. Apart from one luckless postman and Ozzie — the premature passing of the latter character removed the chance of caring about anyone in the film — the Leprechaun’s potential prey are all college aged. Lila is this story’s token trauma kid with caregiver baggage; her mother thought “monsters were always trying to get her.” Lila’s habit of mentioning Tory’s mental health problem does not make a good first impression with the resident mean girl and apparent alcoholic of the sorority, Meredith (Emily Reid). Then there are the nicer but no less cursorily written of the Alpha Epsilon gals: eco-conscious and ex-obsessive Katie (Pepi Sonuga), and uptight overachiever Rose (Sai Bennett). Rounding out the main cast are a pair of destined-to-die bros (Oliver Llewellyn Jenkins, Ben McGregor). Lila and her peers range from disposable to plain irritating, so rooting for any one of them is next to impossible. Even so, their overstated personalities make their inevitable fates more satisfying.

Where Returns excels is its death sequences. Unlike Jones’ film, this one is not afraid of killing off members of the main cast. Lila, admittedly, wears too much plot armor, yet with her mother’s spirit looming over her and the whole story — comedian Heather McDonald put her bang-on Aniston impersonation to good use as well as provided a surprisingly emotional moment in the film — her immunity can be overlooked. Still, the other characters’ brutal demises make up for Lila’s imperviousness. The Leprechaun’s killer set-pieces also happen to demonstrate the time period, seeing as he uses solar panels and a drone in several supporting characters’ executions. A premortem selfie and the antagonist’s snarky mention of global warming additionally add to this film’s particular timestamp.

Critics were quick to say Leprechaun Returns did not break new ground. Sure, there is no one jetting off to space, or the wacky notion of Lubdan becoming a record producer. This reset, however, is still quite charming and entertaining despite its lack of risk-taking. And with yet another reboot in the works, who knows where the most wicked Leprechaun ever to exist will end up next.


Horror contemplates in great detail how young people handle inordinate situations and all of life’s unexpected challenges. While the genre forces characters of every age to face their fears, it is especially interested in how youths might fare in life-or-death scenarios.

The column Young Blood is dedicated to horror stories for and about teenagers, as well as other young folks on the brink of terror.

Leprechaun Returns movie

Pictured: Linden Porco as The Leprechaun in Leprechaun Returns.

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