Victor Crowley | |
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![]() Theatrical release poster | |
Directed by | Adam Green |
Written by | Adam Green |
Produced by | Sarah Elbert Cory Neal Greg Newman |
Starring |
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Cinematography | Jan-Michael Losada |
Edited by | Matt Latham |
Music by | Jason Akers Sam Ewing |
Production company | ArieScope Pictures |
Distributed by | Dark Sky Films |
Release dates |
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Running time | 83 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Victor Crowley (also known as Hatchet IV) is a 2017 American slasher film written and directed by Adam Green. It is the sequel to Hatchet III , and serves as the fourth installment in the Hatchet film series. Kane Hodder returns to the role of the titular killer Victor Crowley. Critical reaction for the film was generally mixed.
A decade after the events of the first three films, survivor of the Honey Island Swamp massacre Andrew Yong is told by his publicist Kathleen that he has been offered a special interview for a true crime TV series, but that that the producers have insisted that his interview take place in the Honey Island Swamp. Andrew initially refuses to go due to his trauma from his experience with Victor Crowley, but is convinced when Kathleen tells him they have offered him $600,000, and she got them to go up to $1,000,000.
Andrew and Kathleen head out on a private charter plane, where Andrew learns that his interview will be hosted by his ex-wife Sabrina and her crew: audio technician Austin, his videographer girlfriend Casey, makeup artist Jay, and production assistant Zach. Suddenly, one of the plane's engines explodes during flight, and Jay and Zach are killed as the plane starts plummeting to the ground.
Meanwhile, at the swamp, Chloe, her boyfriend Alex, and her best friend Rose are preparing to film a trailer for a movie they are creating based on the Crowley massacre, alongside eccentric swamp tour guide/local actor Dillon. For the sake of research, Rose begins searching YouTube for videos of people attempting to recite the voodoo curse that originally brought Crowley back to life. Rose and Dillon overhear the plane crashing, and so go off to investigate, while Alex stays behind to calm Chloe down.
At the plane wreckage, Dillon and Rose find that everyone, aside from Jay, Zach and the pilots have managed to survive the crash, but that Casey is trapped under the seats and has water slowly rising around her due to the plane being partially submerged in the swamp. Meanwhile, Rose's phone autoplays a video of Reverend Zombie reciting the voodoo curse, resurrecting Crowley, who kills Alex. Chloe flees and nearly makes it to the plane wreckage, but is severely wounded by Crowley, who leaves her out in the open as bait.
With the survivors having witnessed the attack, Kathleen begins to suffer from a panic attack and flees the plane. Austin attempts to stop her, but he and Kathleen are both killed by Crowley, who then finishes Chloe off and attacks the plane, making it sink further and causing Casey to drown.
As Dillon locks himself in the pilot's cabin, hoping to radio for help, Andrew, Sabrina and Rose all flee in separate directions while Crowley attempts to saw his way into the wreckage. Crowley kills Sabrina and then corners Rose, Dillon and Andrew, who have gotten the plane engine working. Crowley gets stuck in the engine, but before he can free himself, Dillon sacrifices himself by tackling Crowley into the engine, ultimately shredding them both.
The next day, Marybeth Dunston watches a news report about the plane crash, which reports on the discovery of several dead bodies seemingly unrelated to the plane crash. Realizing Crowley has returned, she brandishes a shotgun, saying; "I've been waiting for you, motherfucker!"
In November 2015, reports emerged that a fourth entry in the Hatchet series was in development. [1] Simultaneously, various outlets alleged that a New Nightmare -esque premise was proposed by series creator Adam Green, but was rejected by the studio. However, Dread Central debunked these claims and instead revealed that Green opted not to move forward with the pitch. [2] Green would later become disenchanted in continuing the franchise and was adamant there wouldn't be another installment. It wasn't until George A. Romero convinced Green to finally make the film at the Rock and Shock convention. [3] Green immediately began work on the script, under the title Arwen's Fancy Dinner. [4]
Principal photography began in secret under the working title Arwen's Revenge. [5] Production spanned eleven days, while an entire day of filming was lost due to a set collapsing. [6] Cast members Kane Hodder, Parry Shen, Laura Ortiz, Dave Sheridan, and Brian Quinn were officially revealed in August 2017. [7]
In July 2017, it was announced that an official '10th Anniversary Event' screening of the original Hatchet film would be playing at the FrightFest Film Festival of 2017, featuring newly released footage. [8] The same event, which took place on August 22, 2017, in Los Angeles, brought forth the announcement that it was actually the premiere of a secretly filmed Hatchet sequel titled Victor Crowley. Green said on the matter, "I couldn't be happier to partner with Dark Sky Films and bring Victor Crowley back to horror fans around the world. Resurrecting the series for its tenth anniversary was our way of saying thank you to everyone in The Hatchet Army and beyond who have supported this series since its inception. This bloodbath is for all of you." [9]
Victor Crowley debuted on August 22, 2017, in Los Angeles, California [10] The film began screening in select theatres across the United States on October 5, 2017, on special one night events featuring Adam Green collectively known as the "Victor Crowley Road Show". [9]
The film was released on blu-ray and DVD on February 6, 2018.[ citation needed ]
On Rotten Tomatoes, Victor Crowley holds an approval rating of 67% based on 15 reviews, with an average rating of 6.7/10. [11]
Steve Barton of Dread Central awarded the film a quality rating of 4 out of 5, stating that "Victor Crowley is a smartly written, outrageously funny, and incredibly gory affair that's nothing short of a gift for slasher fans who appreciate their films wrapped in viscera with gallons of blood to spare." [12] JoBlo.com said of the film "VICTOR CROWLEY may be the best of the sequels to HATCHET, perhaps the best in the series." [13] Kalyn Corrigan of Bloody Disgusting called it "the Gory Slasher Film You're Craving!", while critiquing "Sure, they spend a little too much time on the plane, and it would've been nice to see some of the more human characters last a bit longer during the runtime, but... in all honesty, it's just nice to have a series in the same iconic style that we can count on to carry us through the years of big studio films and over produced predictable cash grabs." [14] Alternately, Brad Miska also reviewing for Bloody Disgusting said, "While Hatchet has since become an iconic franchise, none of the sequels have been able to recreate the magic of the first film. The latest, Victor Crowley, is easily the worst of the bunch." [15]
In October 2019, Danielle Harris revealed that two more films were planned by the studio, with the intention of shooting both back-to-back. [16] In May 2020, Green said that a fifth film was a "safe bet" due to the financial success of Victor Crowley. [17]
Kane Warren Hodder is an American actor, stuntman, and author.
Tony Todd is an American actor who is best known for portraying the title character of the Candyman film series (1992–2021).
Felissa Rose Esposito, better known as simply Felissa Rose, is an American actress and producer. Rose has amassed over 150 film credits, and is best known for her work in the horror genre, for which she is recognized as a "scream queen".
Thomas Lee Holland is an American filmmaker. He is best known for his work in the horror film genre, penning the 1983 sequel to the classic Alfred Hitchcock film Psycho, directing and co-writing the first entry in the long-running Child's Play franchise, and writing and directing the cult vampire film Fright Night. He also directed the Stephen King adaptations The Langoliers and Thinner. He is a two-time Saturn Award recipient. Holland made the jump into children’s literature in 2018 when he co-wrote How to Scare a Monster with fellow writer Dustin Warburton.
Caroline Williams is an American actress and producer. She is best known for her role as Stretch in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre film series. Her other film roles include Alamo Bay (1985), The Legend of Billie Jean (1985), Stepfather II (1989), Days of Thunder (1990), Leprechaun 3 (1995), How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000), Halloween II (2009), and Hatchet III (2013). Williams has made guest appearances on several television series such as Hunter (1987), Murder, She Wrote (1992), ER (1996), Suddenly Susan (1996), Sabrina, the Teenage Witch (1997), The District (2003), and Grey's Anatomy (2010).
Parry Shen is an American actor, author, screenwriter, and producer. Shen's first major acting role was in Better Luck Tomorrow as Ben Manibag, the film's leading character. He also starred in another Asian American film, Surrogate Valentine. He has since starred in the horror film Hatchet and its sequels Hatchet II, Hatchet III, and Victor Crowley. He had a recurring role as Tyler Li in the television series Tru Calling. From 2013 to 2023, he portrayed the role of Brad Cooper on General Hospital.
Hatchet is a 2006 American slasher film written and directed by Adam Green. The film has an ensemble cast, including Joel David Moore, Kane Hodder, Deon Richmond, Tamara Feldman, Richard Riehle, Mercedes McNab, Robert Englund, and Tony Todd. The plot follows a group of tourists on a New Orleans haunted swamp tour, who accidentally get stranded in the wilderness, only to be hunted by a vengeful, supernatural deformed man who kills anyone that enters the swamp. The film's successes spawned a film series including three sequels. A comic book series followed thereafter.
Adam Green is an American actor, filmmaker and musician, best known for his work in horror and comedy films, including the Hatchet franchise, 2010's Frozen, and the television series Holliston. He was also the lead singer for the hard rock and metal band Haddonfield.
Frozen is a 2010 American psychological horror survival film written and directed by Adam Green, and starring Shawn Ashmore, Kevin Zegers, and introducing Emma Bell in her film debut. It tells the story of three friends stranded in a chairlift after a day of skiing, forced to make life-or-death choices in order to survive and get down.
Hatchet II is a 2010 American slasher film written and directed by Adam Green. It is the sequel to Hatchet and the second installment in the titular film series. Picking up right where the first film ended, Hatchet II follows Marybeth as she escapes the clutches of the deformed, swamp-dwelling killer Victor Crowley. After learning the truth about her family's connection to the hatchet-wielding madman, Marybeth returns to the Louisiana swamps along with an army of hunters to recover the bodies of her family and exact the bloodiest revenge against the bayou butcher.
Hatchet III is a 2013 American slasher film directed by B. J. McDonnell and written by Adam Green. It is the sequel to Hatchet II, and the third overall installment in the titular film series. Kane Hodder portrays the main antagonist Victor Crowley for the third time in a row, while Danielle Harris returns to play protagonist Marybeth Dunston.
Among the Living is a 2014 French horror film written and directed by Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo. The film had its world premiere on 10 March 2014 at South by Southwest and follows three young boys who discover that the seemingly banal exterior of their town hides a horrific inner secret.
Terrifier is a 2016 American independent slasher film written and directed by Damien Leone. The film stars Jenna Kanell, Samantha Scaffidi, David Howard Thornton, and Catherine Corcoran. The plot centers on partygoer Tara Heyes (Kanell) and her sister Victoria (Scaffidi), who become targets of the enigmatic serial killer known only as Art the Clown (Thornton) on Halloween night.
The Hatchet film series consists of American slasher horror films developed from original characters created by Adam Green; including four feature length films. The plot primarily focuses on the unintentional encounters of innocent civilians, with the living urban legend of deformed hermit Victor Crowley and the character's violent murders.
Terrifier 2 is a 2022 American supernatural slasher film written, directed, edited and produced by Damien Leone. A sequel to Terrifier (2016), it is the second film centered solely around Art the Clown and third feature-length film to feature the character. It is the second installment in the Terrifier franchise. It includes the return of David Howard Thornton and Samantha Scaffidi, who portrayed Art the Clown and Victoria Heyes, respectively, in the first film, and stars Lauren LaVera, Elliott Fullam, Sarah Voigt, Kailey Hyman and Casey Hartnett. The plot follows Art's resurrection and pursuit of teenage Sienna Shaw (LaVera) and her younger brother Jonathan (Fullam) on Halloween night—a year after the events of the first film.
Damien Leone is an American film director, screenwriter, and film producer known for writing and directing All Hallows' Eve (2013), Terrifier (2016), and Terrifier 2 (2022), each of which feature his character Art the Clown. He is currently working on Terrifier 3 (2024).
David Howard Thornton is an American actor. He is known for his role as Art the Clown from the Terrifier franchise, a role in which he appeared in Terrifier (2016), Mistress Peace Theatre (2020), Terrifier 2 (2022) and Bupkis (2023) and is set to reprise in Terrifier 3 (2024). He has had other various roles in film, television and video games, including Two Worlds II: Pirates of the Flying Fortress (2011), Ride to Hell: Retribution (2013), Invizimals: The Lost Kingdom (2013), Gotham (2017), The Bravest Knight (2019), The Exigency (2019), Alma's Way (2021) and starring as the Mean One in The Mean One (2022).