Stephen King’s It, the movie which made you afraid of clowns in the first place, is being remade and released in 2017. For those unfamiliar with the story, It tells the tale of an evil entity stalking the people of Derry, Maine. This entity is an ancient, shapeshifting horror that transforms in order to exploit the fears of its victims. One of the creature’s favorite forms is that of Pennywise the Dancing Clown. Here’s Bill Skarsgard as Pennywise in the upcoming remake, courtesy of Entertainment Weekly:
Bill Skarsgard has some big shoes to fill, and not just because he is playing a clown. The original It miniseries aired in 1990 and featured Tim Curry as the clown of nightmares. Curry played the clown with a serious hint of sadism, claiming the character Pennywise is “completely irredeemable; he’s the kind of chap that is completely without charm.” The creature switched between many different forms throughout the series, but Pennywise the clown was the most common and became the most iconic.
Skarsgard will hopefully bring a familiar but unique take on the character. When discussing Pennywise, Skarsgard had this to say: “It’s important that we do something fresh and original with this one. It’s purposely not going toward that weird, greasy look… It truly enjoys the shape of the clown Pennywise and enjoys the game and the hunt. What’s funny to this evil entity might not be funny to everyone else. But he thinks it’s funny.” By mentioning the “weird, greasy look,” it sounds like Skarsgard is trying to avoid comparisons to the Joker, which is definitely a step in the right direction for the iconic horror monster.
Excited for the remake of Stephen King’s It? Think it can climb into the ranks of Stephen King’s best movies? Or will it be more akin to Maximum Overdrive? Let us know in the comments below!
