Stephen King’s ‘It’ – everything we know about ‘Part One – The Losers Club’

From cast to plot, release date and trailer info, here's everything you need to know about the 2017 cinematic version of Stephen King's killer clown flick

Clowns. Brrrr. Creepy bastards, right? Whether spraying you with water from a fake flower, hammering at kettle drums in a blood-soaked boiler suit at Download or standing motionless in a car park in Dudley occasionally masturbating, there’s always something about them that your basic human instinct wants to run screaming from. The 1990 miniseries It, based on Stephen King’s novel, played up to this primal fear brilliantly, with Tim Curry’s depiction of Pennywise The Dancing Clown out to murder children in a small Maine town lodging itself in a generation’s nightmares. Now it’s getting the big screen treatment, and here’s everything we know about a movie (or movies) that will undoubtedly make you leap out of your skin like a crap car exploding.

 

What is the release date for It?

Having been in development since 2009, the first film in what looks set to be a series of two movies, entitled It: Part One – The Loser’s Club, is due for release in the UK on September 8, 2017.

Have we had an It trailer?

Advertisement

Yes – a teaser was released on March 29. It’s very scary.

Why two films?

Warner Brothers originally wanted It to be adapted into a single film, but producer Dan Lin announced in 2014 that the monster book would be split into two releases, one following a group of children known as The Losers Club as they battled the titular creature in the 1980s and the second returning to the group as adults as they return to finish It off.

What’s the plot?

Spoilers? Step right this way. It’s the 1980s in Derry, Maine, and a group of outsider kids calling themselves The Loser’s Club band together to hunt down a shape-shifting child-killer they call It, which emerges every 30 years for a spree and changes its appearance to play on the fears and phobias of its prey. In its most regular guise of Pennywise The Dancing Clown, It kills Georgie Denbrough, prompting Georgie’s brother Bill to gather his friends to exact revenge.

Who’s in It?

Swedish actor Bill Skarsgård has taken on the key role of Pennywise, with the likes of Jaeden Lieberher, Jeremy Ray Taylor, Sophia Lillis and the fabulously named Finn Wolfhard featuring as members of The Loser’s Club. Here’s the original bunch in badly-acted action.

Why has it taken so long to make?

Advertisement

After racking up numerous rewrites, re-castings and two directors – Cary Fukunaga made way for Argentinian director Andres Muschietti in 2015 – It began filming in June last year after six years in production, largely around Port Hope, Oshawa and Toronto in Canada.

What are people saying about It?

The first trailer for the film was premiered at the SXSW in March, and had the audience screaming. Bloody Disgusting, which was in attendance, described it thus: “The trailer opens with footage of Bill Denbrough making a paper boat for his little brother Georgie. We then move outside, where Georgie is chasing his boat in a rainstorm as it floats next to the curb. Suddenly, Georgie runs right into a street barrier, which knocks him down on the ground. He then watches as his boat sails into a gutter. He runs to the gutter and tries to see if he can see his boat. As he looks deep into the sewers, Pennywise abruptly appears before the screen cuts to black.” Dread Central said of scenes of the Loser’s Club: “The kids are clearly very adept at working off one another. There was a chemistry between the four that was wonderful to see and it’s obvious that Muschietti worked very hard to ensure they were believable.” In the meantime, enjoy the 1990’s trailer below.

Was the clown craze part of the publicity for the film?

The film’s official stealth ad campaign has so far consisted of putting out a picture of the new Pennywise last year and posting fictional Missing Person posters for children killed by It in the film around Derry, but the spate of sightings of people dressed as clowns around the world may be to do with what King himself calls “low-level hysteria”. New Line Cinema have denied any connection and some have argued that the sightings may have been part of viral campaign for Rob Zombie’s similarly clown-based horror film 31 instead.

We’ll update you on It: Part One – The Losers Club right here as more information is revealed, so bookmark this page if you’re a fan.

You May Also Like

Advertisement

TRENDING

Advertisement

More Stories