The Illuminati are behind it… and other crazy theories about where the ‘killer clown’ trend came from
Having started in America and then spread to the UK, many people are baffled as to why this traumatising trend took off
THEY may not have actually killed anyone yet, but so-called 'killer clown' sightings have shaken the world all the same.
Appearing out of nowhere and often armed with hammers or chainsaws, yobs dressed as creepy clowns have mobbed British streets to terrorise innocent bystanders - and the trend shows no signs of stopping.
Childline was even swamped by calls from frightened children last week, as the killer clown craze continued to make headlines in the run-up to Halloween.
Having started in America and then spread to the UK, many people are baffled as to why this traumatising trend took off, and there are some pretty wild theories aiming to answer that question.
Whilst some lay the blame with McDonald's, others point to Hollywood as the source of the killer clowns.
Apparently, we've all been unknowingly pre-programmed to carry out a mission for the Illuminati, and scary clowns are the symbol which will kick us into action.
It's just a Hollywood publicity stunt
The upcoming remake of Stephen King's clown-based horror novel It would be the perfect excuse for a worldwide publicity stunt by the film's producers.
However, after this claim was levelled at New Line Cinema, the producers were forced to deny it, claiming they have nothing to do with the sinister trend.
And Stephen King himself even had to come forward to deny any involvement in the creepy clown craze, insisting he's not to be blamed either.
Even if he wasn't directly involved, copycat clowns could have been inspired by the clown in It, and started a trend which quickly spiralled out of control.
It's a photography project gone wrong
In 2014, a far-less widespread trend saw a handful of scary clowns terrorise residents in California, but there was a simple explanation behind the craze.
The so-called 'Wasco clown' started the trend by dressing up as a creepy clown and posting shots on social media as part of a perfectly innocent photography project.
But things got a bit out of hand when locals saw his clown photos online and decided to join in themselves, venturing outside to terrorise people behind the cover of a clown mask.
Perhaps the recent surge started with a similar project, before being taken too far by copyclowns?
Lay the blame with Ronald McDonald
One of the strangest killer clown theories blames Ronald McDonald for the trend taking off.
A killer clown dressed as the Maccies mascot caused a panic after stalking a branch of the popular fast food outlet.
And some people claim Ronald is to blame for the whole thing, with a conspiracy blog describing him as a satanic symbol.
Social media is the culprit
Perhaps the best theory behind the killer clown craze is the simplest: the popularity of clown videos on social media means viewers have joined in to get online recognition.
This means that any of the above theories could be blamed for the trend's origin, whilst social media could be responsible for encouraging the copycat clowns who have joined in since.