Can a sequel redeem a horror villain’s potential? “The Jester 2” makes a compelling case. A significant step up from its predecessor, “The Jester 2” delivers on the promise of the original by embracing its whimsical, retro horror sensibilities and giving its titular villain the story he deserves.
Written and directed by Colin Krawchuk, “The Jester 2” is the follow-up to the 2023 film “The Jester,” about a menacing magician who terrorizes a small town on Halloween. The sequel tells the story of teen magician Max, who finds herself locked in a brutal showdown with the Jester, who needs her help in order to satisfy the evil that gives him eternal life.
Krawchuk’s sequel builds on the things I loved most about the first film. It’s drenched in Halloween, making it truly feel like a Halloween film; It has a whimsy to it that feels reminiscent of ’90s gateway horror shows like “Are You Afraid of the Dark?” or “Goosebumps; and these things combined make it a feel-good horror film, if there even is such a thing.
The film begins similarly to the first, with a guy feeling down on his luck when The Jester appears. This time, rather than being alone, the victim is surrounded by friends at an outdoor Halloween gathering. For the sequel, The Jester now makes a more grandiose entrance, emerging from a magician’s chest rather than just appearing out of thin air. He also interestingly tears off his mask from the first film to reveal another mask underneath that looks to be embedded in his face. There doesn’t seem to be much rhyme or reason to this other than to explain a new look for the character in the sequel.
Like the first victim in the first film, the movie kicks off with a hanging. However, this time, The Jester adds insult to injury courtesy of some fellow partygoers who unknowingly help finish the job for him.
From here, things go in a completely different direction thanks to a chance encounter between The Jester and 15-year-old magician Max. When the two connect over a magic trick in a diner, their fates are accidentally intertwined, putting both in mortal danger.
It’s here that the franchise takes an interesting turn because it appears to retcon some aspects of the first film, particularly regarding what The Jester is and the lore surrounding the character. At the end of the first film, it’s implied that The Jester is some sort of manifestation of depression, self-doubt, or other internal demons. However, with “The Jester 2,” he receives a more specific origin story that suggests he appears each Halloween to carry out a particular task required of him. I can only assume this new lore is designed to give the character and the franchise some legs to stand on if there were to be a “The Jester 3.”
The performances from Michael Sheffield as The Jester and Kaitlyn Trentham as Max are a highlight of this film, both individually and in their chemistry together.
Trentham does an incredible job as the protagonist, whose love of magic makes her an outcast among her peers. Her performance in the magic shop after being bullied for dressing up like a magician at fifteen is all too relatable for anyone who ever loved something that wasn’t cool when they were teenagers. You see in her the polarity of something you love, on one hand, but on the other, it’s something that makes you feel miserable because of how different people treat you because of it.
Sheffield’s Jester will undoubtedly continue to draw comparisons to Art the Clown, being another clown-faced silent killer. Still, you’ve got to give kudos to him, as he not only has to play the part without talking, but he also doesn’t get to rely on facial expressions in his performance because it’s hidden behind a mask. Still, he conveys exactly what his character is feeling throughout the film, and you’re never left wondering what is playing out in the scene. In one scene in particular, Max finds herself in a dangerous situation that isn’t at the hands of The Jester. Here, The Jester takes care of the problem for her, but as he does so, without speaking, he almost seems to say, “Are you kidding me? How did you get into this situation?”
Although silent, The Jester finds a way to communicate with Max in the film, and it’s done briefly through an Ouija board. In most films, if something is communicating via a Ouija board, it’s either slowly spelled out on screen or spelled out and then repeated by the person using the board. Krawchuk took a more creative approach, having the words appear on screen once they’re spelled out, in an effort to keep the dialogue going. I thought it was a nice touch and was one of those moments that add a bit of whimsy to the film.
As a horror film, I must, of course, discuss the kills. While there’s some gore, I imagine some horror fans will take issue with the fact that much of the kills happen off-screen. That said, thanks to the supernatural element of The Jester, there are a few rather creative and unique kills carried out in this film that I think folks will enjoy despite the lighter gore.
Overall, I enjoyed “The Jester 2” and feel as if this was the film The Jester deserved the first time around. It’s by no means perfect, but it has all the makings of a film that will eventually make its way into folks’ Halloween movie marathon rotation, and best of all, it works independently of the first film.
“The Jester 2” arrives with a special two-night screening event on September 15 and 16, 2025, from DREAD and Fathom Entertainment. Tickets are on sale now.
