Bringing one of Stephen King’s most popular novels to the big screen meant dividing the material into two installments. The result met expectations
Stephen King is the king of horror for a reason. The writer has more than 70 published books behind him. Of that list, some have become much more popular than others and, in general, they tend to be the ones that have been adapted to audiovisuals. The glow, Misery, Carrie, The Mystery of Salem’s Lot… However, there is a novel that takes the cake and has had two film versions with a difference of 27 years between them. The last one, furthermore, is the highest-grossing horror film in the history of cinema.
It It was published in 1986 and in 1990 it became a miniseries. The story is set in a small town in Maine and the protagonists are a group of children who come together to confront a diabolical entity that has the form of a clown called Pennywise. This being emerges every 27 years to satisfy its appetite for infantile blood. King’s story is divided into two parts: it begins with the protagonists as children and then recovers the characters almost three decades later, as adults, to once again confront them against the diabolical villain.
The 90s miniseries consists of two episodes. Tim Curry played the clown and Seth Green, Annette O’Toole and Harry Anderson are also part of the cast. Although It It is a decent adaptation, director Andy Muschietti transferred the story to the big screen 27 years later and the result was one of the best horror sagas of all time.
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It premiered in 2017 and grossed more than 702 million dollars worldwide with a budget of 35 million dollars. With that figure he surpassed The sixth sensewhich, to date, was the most successful film of the genre at the box office with more than 672 million dollars collected.
Warner Bros. Tim Curry as Pennywise in ‘It’
Bill Skarsgård plays Pennywise and, for the protagonists, Muschietti had Jaeden Martell, Finn Wolfhard, Jack Dylan Grazer, Sophia Lillis, Jeremy Ryan Taylor, Wyatt Oleff and Chosen Jacbos. In addition to sweeping the box office, It received very good reviews. With a 85% of critical note in Rotten TomatoesMuschietti’s version surpasses the miniseries from the 90s, which only has a 68% score from the specialized press.
The plan was not to limit itself to a single film, as Muschietti transferred King’s story to the cinema in two parts. It: Chapter 2 It landed on billboards in 2019 and, although it did not achieve the same success at the box office as its predecessor, it did not do badly at all. It is the sixth highest-grossing horror film in cinema history with more than 473 million dollars collected around the world. Although its critical score dropped to 62%, the sequel recruited actors of the caliber of James McAvoy and Jessica Chastain. Bill Hader, Isaiah Mustafa and Jay Ryan complete the main cast, which once again featured Skarsgård as the terrifying clown.
Stephen King approval
Warner Bros. Bill Skarsgård as Pennywise in ‘It’
the saga It Not only did the public and critics like it, but King was also satisfied. Muschietti said that the author sent him an email telling him how much he liked his version.
“I sent him a written letter asking for forgiveness for all the creative licenses I had taken. He saw the film and his reaction was immediate. He sent me an email expressing how much he liked it and that I shouldn’t worry because all the changes were approved“he revealed in Express in 2017.
Looking ahead to the sequel, King’s approval was made as a cameo: The writer appears in a scene with McAvoy’s character.
