IT Trailer: Pennywise is Back

2.8K

The trailer just dropped for the 2017 remake of a Stephen King classic, the terrifying IT. Grab your inhaler, we’re headed back to Derry.

Based off the 1986 novel of the same name, and the popular 1990 TV Mini-Series, IT looks to be a pretty faithful adaptation, albeit with a significantly modern deviation.

The trailer doesn’t appear to give too much away yet, but the main difference from it’s predecessor in this retelling is that the story begins with the characters in the 1980s, and will not follow their return to their hometown as adults. The original followed the protagonists from their childhood in Derry, Maine during the 1950’s, where they encountered Pennywise the clown, an ancient and evil entity who has preyed on the residents on and off for hundreds of years. 30 years later, the entity returns as the “Losers Club” also make their way back to Derry.

We get a distinctly eighties vibe from what was shown, which is good as it now takes place in the eighties, that helps to enhance the feel of the small town in rural Maine, the perfect setting for a classically themed horror movie. Other than it being in a different time period, all the major elements were there:

• Younger brother Georgie encounters Pennywise while sailing his paper boat down the street; a pivotal scene in the original film and novel.
• Some history is established of the quiet town of Derry, namely that they have experienced a large amount of disappearances over the years.
• The ‘Losers Club” comes together. This is a group of kids who have shared experiences not only with your run of the mill schoolyard bullying, but also with the creepy clown.
• The sewers being the lair of the demon known as Pennywise.
• You’ll float too!

Clowns are creepy!

The look of Pennywise, played in this iteration by Bill Skarsgard, is both similar to the look of Tim Curry’s clown in the original, while having some it’s own unique design embellishments. A purposeful effort was made to look more Renaissance, to give the audience the feel that he is a very old and timeless being. Not too much was shown of Skarsgard’s portrayal and hopefully they keep him mostly under wraps until the audience gets to see him on the big screen. Not only to build suspense, but to avoid the inevitable comparison of him to the original before the public gets to see it played out for themselves in the context of the film.

Also of note, Finn Wolfhard (Mike Wheeler from Stranger Things!) plays Richie Tozier!

Absent from the trailer were any shots of the heroes as adults in present day, and this is for a very deliberate reason. This film is about the kids. Instead of shooting it as the original was done, with the movie cutting back and forth between two time periods, past and present, they have split them into two separate films. On March 11th, Stephen King confirmed that this film is titled; Part 1 – The Losers’ Club.

It’s a different, more linear approach that helps to distance itself from the original and to give more time to each part.

The cinematography in the trailer combined with an equally eerie musical score set this up as a must-see horror movie for 2017.

IT will float into theaters on September 8th, 2017.