Lauren LaVera admits she has been "terrified" of clowns for decades.

The 30-year-old actress, who battles supernatural killer Art the Clown as Sienna Shaw in the slasher film 'Terrifier 3', says the clown doll from the 1982 Stephen Spielberg horror ‘Poltergeist’ freaked her out and has left her scared ever since.

She told Dread Central: "It’s funny because I really didn’t find it all that scary generally … but it was that one clown doll … that really messed with my brain.

"And ever since, I’ve been terrified of clowns."

Discussing what makes clowns so off-putting for her, Lauren added: "It’s their uncanny nature.

"They always have this plastered smile on their face, and it’s like that white makeup on their face, how jovial they’re meant to be, but you just feel like they can switch and turn at any moment because they have this fake plastered smile.

"I think it would be easy to see them just snap. So, I think that’s why I don’t like them personally, but I think most people can probably relate."

Damien Leone, 42, has directed the third instalment of the gruesome series and it topped the US box office in its debut week following release.

The picture is set at Christmas and Lauren can get behind horror weaponising the festive season as she is not a fan of the December holiday.

She said: "I don’t like Christmas at all.

"I told Damien, too, when he said he planned to set this one at Christmas. I hate Christmas. I told him that, and just said: ‘Yeah, this is going to be great.’

"It added to the unease of everything Sienna was feeling. I don’t think she appreciates Christmas much, either. And I think you can see that in her.

"It’s the juxtaposition of something joyful and playful right next to the gruesome horrors of Art the Clown.

"And the vintage colours of Christmas really lend themselves to darkness on film. I would think that the settings of our production just looked so beautiful against all that blood."