While the recently released Stephen King adaptation The Dark Tower was met with critical and box office disappointment, the future looks very bright for the upcoming It, which is directed by Andy Muschietti and written by Chase Palmer, Cary Fukunaga and Gary Dauberman. Early previews have generated some extremely positive reactions and as such, even before it’s actually reached general audiences, attention has already turned to the prospect of It 2.
The television miniseries of the classic Stephen King story consisted of two parts – reflecting the way in which the format of the source novel sees 12 year-olds battle demonic clown Pennywise, before heading back for a rematch thirty years later. This being the case, Muschietti’s cinematic version of the story has always been expected to take the form of a movie and a sequel. In cinema, however, sequels are entirely dependent upon the success of the initial instalment, which suggests two things – firstly, that Muschietti’s film is a satisfying experience on its own, and secondly, that a sequel is now inevitable, given the positive response to It.
Such a suggestion has been essentially confirmed now by Bill Skarsgard and Jaeden Lieberher, who play Pennywise and the young Bill Denbrough in the movie, respectively. Speaking to U.K. outlet Metro ahead of the film’s wide release, Skarsgard stated that It 2 does indeed exist as a project – to which he’s attached – but that it’s still very much in the development phase.
“I am attached to it but that’s all I can say, we’re in the early stages and I’m talking to Andy about it and figuring out what It will be. It’s a different story but I’m excited to delve in deeper to the character as there’s more exploration for who Pennywise is.
“I think we’ll see where it goes but it’s definitely just… reading the movie and the book and talking about the second one, we have to raise the ante and not just do the same thing again so I’m looking forward to that process.”
Indeed, the second half of the source novel is quite a different undertaking, with the central characters of The Losers Club – the once 12 year-olds that fended off Pennywise – returning as adults, with very different lives and responsibilities. While the second part of the 1990 miniseries received some criticism for being anti-climactic, it seems that Bill Skarsgard and Andy Muschietti are working hard to keep the story of It strong through the sequel.
For his part, Jaeden Lieberher expressed his desire for the movie to be successful specifically so he can see where the plot goes in It 2, and crucially, who will play the adult Losers.
“The only reason I want this movie to do well is so they have all the money they want for the new one and I’m so excited to see who they pick for Bill – they already picked two great Bill’s in the mini series and I can’t wait to see who they pick now.”
Richard Thomas played the adult Bill Denbrough in the miniseries, and he was joined by John Ritter, Tim Reid, Annette O’Toole, Richard Masur, Dennis Christopher and Harry Anderson. A high profile movie in 2017, from an exciting and respected filmmaker, should attract a great deal of interest from a host of new names when it comes to casting the grown-up, forty-something Losers. Could we see a Ryan Reynolds as the adult Bill Denbrough, then? Or perhaps a Joshua Jackson? Now that Bill Skarsgard has confirmed his involvement, we may well start hearing some further casting news for It 2 before the year is out. Stay tuned for more.