A promotional image for IT: Chapter Two shows the two actresses playing the character of Beverly Marsh passing the signature calling card of Pennywise the Dancing Clown across a table — a blood red balloon.
The otherworldly entity known as Pennywise or simply It is a generational terror for the town of Derry, awakening every twenty-seven years to feed on fear and flesh. It prefers to terrorize and hunt down children, but adults aren’t safe from It either.
The sequel to the hit 2017 horror film stars James McAvoy, Jessica Chastain, and Bill Hader as grownup members of the Losers’ Club who return to their cursed childhood town to kill It. The Losers managed to defeat the monster clown as kids rather handily. But if this adaptation is anything like the novel, fighting It as adults without the benefits of childhood’s innocence will prove to be much more challenging.
It: Chapter Two returns to terrorize audiences on September 6, 2019.
While taking a break from terrorizing audiences everywhere, Pennywise actor Bill Skarsgård spilled the deets on working with the new cast of It: Chapter Two.
In an interview with Collider, Skarsgard talked about the shift from working with child actors to the star lineup of seasoned Hollywood actors, including Jessica Chastain and James McAvoy.
“It’s weird and it’s surreal because some of them are really big stars and they’re coming into your thing,” Skarsgård said.
Image Via AFP
Though there is bound to be tension between the characters on-screen, the atmosphere off-camera is anything but, the Swedish actor toldCollider.
“They’re excited, and I just had a lot of fun hanging out with all of them,” Skarsgård said. “It’s going to be a very different shooting experience with all adults, for sure, but it will be fun. They’re all really cool and talented people, so I think they will bring a lot to the table.”
The actor also spoke about his incredible transformation to step into the role of Pennywise, a character who has become an icon.
“I can’t even relate myself to it anymore. And now that I’m going back and doing it, it’s such a bizarre thing. I don’t think I’ll ever really experience anything like it.”
IT: Chapter 2 will be released on September 6, 2019.
Coming to Netflix, Stephen King’s 2012 novel In The Tall Grass is getting an adaptation. The third of King’s works that Netflix has adapted, the novella will be produced into a full-on feature length film. The story centers on a pair of siblings who pull off to the side of the road in Kansas to aid a screaming boy in the tall grass. According to Deadline, Westworld’s James Marsden is set to star with Vincenzo Natali directing and writing.
2. Pet Sematary
via Amazon UK
Originally adapted in 1989, King’s Pet Sematary is getting another crack at an adaptation. According to the adaptations’ screenwriter, Jeff Buhler, it is going to be “the scariest Stephen King adaptations ever.”Pet Sematary tells the story of a doctor who moves his family to a rural Maine town and quickly discovers a cursed burial ground behind his house. As of writing this,Jason Clarkeand John Lithgow are the only actors confirmed to be starring.
3. Castle Rock
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Being released on July 25 of this year, Hulu will be the host of this long-awaited King adaptation. Familiar faces like Terry O’Quinnand Bill Skarsgårdare set to star. Pulling characters and ideas from several of King’s work, Castle Rock is the connection between many of King’s novels and stories.
4. It: Chapter Two
via IMDb
With much excitement following the highly-anticipated sequel to King’s first chapter in the It series, It: Chapter Twowill complete the story of the Loser’s Club. Jessica Chastainand King adaptation favorite Bill Skarsgård are set to star as Beverly Marsh and Pennywise. In the second chapter of the story, the kids, who are now grown ups, return to Derry twenty-seven years later.
5. Hearts In Atlantis
via Very Fine Books
Not to be confused with the 2001 adaptation of King’s story, Hearts In Atlantis is getting a film revampwith a different title. The 1999 collection of two novellas and three short stories follows a group of college kids from 1966 who become fascinated with the Machiavellian undertones of the card game Hearts. Set to be directed by Johannes Roberts, the adaptation does not have any confirmed actors or a release date.
6. Drunken Fireworks
via Goodreads
With news of this stemming all the way back to 2016, we’re not so sure this adaptation will ever be released. With James Franco set to star and script by Matt Rager, Drunken Fireworks follows a blue-collar mechanic and a retired mob odd who go head to head in an annual Fourth of July fireworks competition. With no director, release date, or any news of anyone else involved besides Matt Rager and James Franco, I think this adaptation might have to be laid to rest.
7. The Tailsman
via Slash Film
Director of John Green’s bestselling novel adaptation, The Fault in Our Stars, Josh Booneis set to write and possibly direct King’s The Tailsman. The Tailsman follows a boy who enters a parallel world known as the Territories in search of a powerful talisman in order to save his mother from certain death. The adaptation was originally going to be a television show, but has been turned into premiering for the big screen. No stars have been confirmed and no release date has been published to date.
8. Revival
via Audible
Another King adaptation favorite, Josh Boone is set to direct the adaptation of King’s 2014 novel, Revival. With similar themes to Frankenstein, the story follows minister Charles Jacobs and his wife through five decades. Russell Crowe, who is set to play Charles Jacobs, is the only actor currently involved with the adaptation according to Boone. Release dates are still unknown.
9.The Dark Tower
via Ebay
The Dark Tower was released as a film in 2017 and was a major flop. Thankfully, Amazon was willing to give King’s iconic novel another shot as a miniseries. King himself describes the TV series as a “complete reboot”with Glen Mazzara set to star in the adaptation. The Dark Tower is an eight book series which follows gunslinger Ronald Deschain who is on a quest to find the Dark Tower, a building said to be the nexus of all universes.
Swiftly picked up by Anonymous Content, one of King’s newer novels, Sleeping Beauties, is in development as a television show. Taking place in the near future, Sleeping Beauties follows a women’s prison in a small Appalachian town in which the female prisoners are shrouded in a cocoon-like gauze when they sleep. The only confirmed members of the upcoming adaptation are Michael Sugar and Ashley Zaltawho are set as executive producers. No release date or actors have been confirmed for the project.
12. Doctor Sleep
via Amazon
Sequel to The Shining, King’s 2013 novel Doctor Sleep is on the fast track to become a new film. Doctor Sleep follows Danny Torrance in his 40’s, struggling with the same demons of anger and alcoholism that his father dealt with. Mike Flanagan is set to direct and rewrite the script. Possibly a part of a Shining Trilogy, a prequel called The Overlook Hotelcould be in the works in the near future. There isn’t a release date associated with the adaptation yet.
13. The Tommyknockers
via Amazon
A remake of the 1993 ABC miniseries of the same title is now in the works as a film. Set to be produced by James Wan and Roy Lee, King’s 1987 novel follows Bobbi Anderson and the town of Haven, Maine which falls under the influence of a dangerous gas from an unearthed spacecraft. Although very recent news, no one else besides Lee and Wan have been associated with the project.
14. The Long Walk
via Pinterest
Written under the pen name Richard Bachman, The Long Walk is one of the newest of King’s works to be adapted. Warner Bros. will be bringing the 1979 novel to the big screen. The Long Walk follows a dystopian America in which 100 teenage boys are forced to participate in an annual walking contest that ends when only one walker is left alive. Basically, The Hunger Games but with walking. According to EW, James Vanderbilt will write and produce the film.
It’s been less than two months since IT premiered in theaters, and yet, fans and actors alike are already casting their votes for the sequel’s line-up.
IT: Chapter 2 will follow the adult versions of the Loser’s Club, meaning that the roles are up for grabs. Ahead of the premiere the actors cast their vote for who should fill their role.
Image Via Getty/Steve Granitz
Sophia Lillis, who plays Beverly Marsh, said she would cast Jessica Chastain for the role of Bev, and it appears that it just may come true.
In an interview with Screenrant Chastain was asked about the buzz surrounding her desired appearance in the sequel. She said that she would be on board, and reflected on her close relationship with director Andy Muschietti and his sister, Barbara.
“I love Andy and Barbara [Muschietti]. I worked with them on Andy’s directorial debut, Mama. And, you know, Barbara is one of my best friends so… we’ll see,” Chastain said.
Image Via Alberto E. Rodriguez/Celebzz
“They’re like my family. Anything that they’re doing I want to be a part of, so I hope we can make it happen.”
The two stunning actresses definitely bear an uncanny similarity both in their appearances and roles. Lillis brought a layer of vulnerability and strength to the emotional role of Beverly Marsh who, as IT viewers know, experiences an abusive household and serious bullying in school, on top of her Pennywise troubles.
Chastain is also familiar with emotional roles, having starred in the riveting award-winning film The Help (2011), as well as the critically acclaimed trilogy The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby (2014), just to name a few.
While Muschietti hasn’t confirmed whether or not Chastain is a serious contender for the role of Beverly Marsh in IT: Chapter 2, we’re putting our bets on seeing her face alongside Pennywise soon.
If you or one of your friends has a Netflix subscription, then you’ve probably finished the second season of Stranger Things. If so, you were probably devastated when Bob got his chest devoured by a bunch of Demogorgons. It was very sad and, for those of us who have a lifelong connection to Sean Astin (i.e. Samwise Gamgee), it was deeply disturbing.
When Bob started becoming a real father figure to Will, that’s when I knew I wanted him to be around for a while. The Duffer brothers are true Jedi masters of emotionally manipulating their audience. They made Bob incredibly relatable when he began talking about his backstory in episode three. He tells Will about his childhood nemesis, a clown named Mr. Baldo. Bob had to face off against the clown in his dreams, which Mr. Baldo made his home. And where did Bob live at the time? Maine.
Image Via Netflix
If this sounds similar to Stephen King’s It, that’s because the Duffer brothers are smart and make artistic decisions like these intentionally. Though some fans believe Stranger Things occupies the same universe as King’s Pennywise, the Duffer brothers have sounded off.
Well, we both have a problem with clowns. I’ve had it my entire life. I had it when I was really little, so when there were clowns at a party, it was a real problem for me. Then in 1990, we saw the It mini-series and Tim Curry’s performance as Pennywise really messed me up.
So yeah, I think [Bob’s clown story] was really me describing something that just freaked me out. I didn’t have that experience myself. I just had nightmares like that.
Note Duffer does not outright deny the possibility that Stranger Things and It exist in the same universe. It seems a little unlikely, though, considering he also says that Stephen King does exist in the world of Stranger Things. Some of the characters have read his work. So if King exists in the same world as the Upside Down, then maybe it was not It that inspired Stranger Things, but Stranger Things that inspired It.
