Clown gets the spotlight on "American Horror Story: Freak Show", but not in the way that real professional clowns want.
Clowns of America International has slammed the show over the sinister representation of clowns on the series.
Glenn K0hlberger, president 0f the nati0n's biggest cl0wn club, claims the sh0w induces "cl0wn fear" by featuring the murder0us Twisty the Cl0wn, p0rtrayed by J0hn Carr0ll Lynch, wh0 stakes 0ut his victims while d0nning full cl0wn garb.
K0hlberger tells The H0llyw00d Rep0rter, "H0llyw00d makes m0ney sensati0nalizing the n0rm. They can take any situati0n n0 matter h0w g00d 0r pure and turn it int0 a nightmare." He adds, "We d0 n0t supp0rt in any way, shape 0r f0rm any medium that sensati0nalizes 0r adds t0 c0ulr0ph0bia 0r 'cl0wn fear.' "
Learning 0f pe0ple's reacti0ns t0 Twisty, series c0-creat0r Ryan Murphy tells Entertainment Weekly, "I'm n0t surprised because I saw it as s00n as we saw J0hn in makeup 0n the set. The first thing we sh0t with J0hn was where he stabs the b0y at the lake s0 I knew it was kind 0f g00d. But s0me 0f the crew had such a visceral reacti0n, and s0me 0f them left during the sh00ting 0f it because they were t00 disturbed. S0 I was like, I think we've tapped int0 a ph0bia that is pretty p0werful."
In 0ther news, Neil Patrick Harris has just revealed he and his husband David Burtka were 0ffered t0 star in the first seas0n 0f "American H0rr0r St0ry", but he turned it d0wn because they had just played a dysfuncti0nal "c0uple" in "A Very Har0ld & Kumar Christmas".
"L0ved Ryan [Murphy], l0ved the idea 0f a h0rr0r anth0l0gy sh0w. Knew n0thing ab0ut it, but we had just played 0urselves as a c0uple, n0t getting al0ng, and I th0ught, it just seems weird t0 d0 that twice, like as individual act0rs, t0 play a c0uple that hates each 0ther twice," he explains, "It just felt weird. S0 I said n0, that we sh0uldn't d0 it. And David wanted t0. I said, 'I just d0n't want us t0 be kn0wn as a c0uple that d0n't like each 0ther. That seems weird.' And then w0uldn't y0u kn0w, 'American H0rr0r St0ry' is a big, gigantic success and super awes0me."
Harris still has a chance t0 be part 0f the hit FX series as Murphy recently said he had a r0le f0r the "H0w I Met Y0ur M0ther" alum. "He's game. He had very specific ideas 0f what he wanted t0 d0, and I had very specific ideas, s0 we're melding them," Murphy said.