Almost two months have passed since Pennywise first sunk his teeth into the global box office and still, New Line’s It reboot continues to print money.
One glance at the box office charts will tell you that the Stephen King adaptation – arguably the best of the bunch – has grossed $324 million in North America, which makes for a grand total of $671 million worldwide. Not bad for an R-rated horror pic anchored by a cast of relative unknowns, eh?
It’s a testimony to Andy and Barbara Muschietti – not to mention the young cast – that It exceeded all expectations to become one of 2017’s greatest hits. Pennywise isn’t just going after the box office, though, as the Dancing Clown is after some Oscar gold, too, it seems.
That’s because Warner Bros. has launched a For Your Consideration campaign for the film this week and they’re aiming high, looking for nods in the following categories: Best Picture, Best Director for Andy Muschietti, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Supporting Actor for several candidates, Best Supporting Actress for Sophia Lillis, Best Cinematography, Best Production Design, Best Film Editing, Best Costume Design, Best Visual Effects, Best Sound Mixing, Best Sound Editing, Best Makeup and Hairstyling and Best Original Score.
Whether or not It will receive any attention from the Academy remains to be seen. After all, horror movies don’t have the best track record when it comes to the Oscars and it’s unlikely that Muschietti’s pic will be the one to change that – despite it being a great film. Sure, Pennywise may find himself with nods in some of the minor categories – perhaps Best Costume Design or Best Makeup and Hairstyling – but it’s almost a certainty that the demonic clown will be shut out of Best Picture, Director, etc.
Still, all involved with the reboot should be mighty proud of the success they’ve achieved thus far and looking ahead, it’s already been confirmed that Pennywise will return for It: Chapter 2. While plot details are still scarce, we know that things will pick up with the Losers Club 27 years after the events of It.
Given that, we’re unclear as yet whether the film will herald the return of Finn Wolfhard (Stranger Things), Sophia Lillis and the rest of the gang, but assuming Muschietti and Co. incorporate flashbacks into the story, there’s a very good chance New Line’s sequel will feature both the original Losers Club and their adult counterparts, as the fight against Pennywise begins to reach its bloody conclusion.
Chalk that up as conjecture for now, though, as there’s currently no script in place and given that the demonic entity has been banished for upwards of 27 years, the Losers Club will now go their separate ways – at least, until the advent of It: Chapter 2 in 2019.