After much speculation, it has been announced that Bill Skarsgård will be reprising his role of the infamous Pennywise the Clown in the IT spin-off Welcome to Derry.
The show, which will air on Max, will dive once more into Stephen King’s ‘IT’ universe in a way it hasn’t been shown before. Skarsgard played the role of Pennywise in the 2017 film and in its sequel, gaining praise for his portrayal.
The series was announced in February 2023 and is confirmed as a nine-part series.
For those that aren’t familiar with the novel, a classic by author Stephen King, the story follows an entity that exploits the fears of its young victims, mostly by taking the shape of ‘Pennywise.’ Pennywise is a dancing clown that reels children in by appearing harmless and comical, but later takes on a manifestation of what the children are most petrified of.
In the films, Pennywise (played by Skarsgård) is a creepy and sadistic clown, using the typical clown persona to reel children down into the sewers. The plot of the successful It films follows ‘The Losers Club’ – a gang of seven outcast children who are relentlessly bullied for different characteristics and band together through safety in numbers. One by one, they are greeted with ‘IT’ – an alien entity that takes the form of whatever a child fears in order to isolate and therefore feed, on the town of Derry’s children. The Losers Club is followed as they make multiple attempts to outsmart Pennywise.
The prequel was originally meant to be released this year, but has been delayed until next year, giving more time to build anticipation.
The series is rumoured to revolve around how Pennywise came to be and the deep history of evil in Derry, Maine. Although fans have pointed out that Pennywise is just a manifestation of ‘IT’, the alien antagonist, it is believed that Pennywise was the main form he chose to take to win over children. Because of this, the theory is that the series will follow the first stories revolving Pennywise the clown and his first captures.
A 2025 premiere date will be announced at a later date. Stay updated with The Indiependent.
Words by Maisie Hancox
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