IT Chapter 2: James McAvoy was terrified of Bill Skarsgard’s Pennywise
By Billy Cripps
We know how The Losers’ Club kids had genuine reactions to the terror of Pennywise. Now James McAvoy tells us how terrifying ol’ Pennywise was to him.
Well it’s 2019 and we’re about to return to Derry with The Losers’ Club now as mostly successful adults. We’ll even get to see the kids again too but there are currently no details other than the return of cinema’s scariest clown. So bring on IT: Chapter 2.
Speaking of clowns. Recently appearing on Good Morning America, star James McAvoy revealed he’s afraid of clowns in real life. So needless to say, Bill Skarsgard’s frenetic portrayal of Pennywise The Dancing Clown freaked him out. Here’s what he’s saying per Alternative Press:
"“He’s amazing. The guy who plays the clown is terrifying. He’s a lovely guy, and yet he really freaked me out. I remember standing there with the rest of the cast, all these adults, and we’d all done weird freaky stuff. And we are all looking at each other going, ‘I don’t like being here. I don’t like being an actor today.’ He really did, he really freaked me out. I never liked clowns as a kid.”"
More from Stephen King
- 31 Days of Horror: Stephen King’s The Boogeyman thrills
- 31 Days of Horror: Christine- Two masters of horror deliver an underrated classic
- The Boogeyman is a scream-filled reflection on grief
- Looking back at Stephen King’s creepy cult classic Children of the Corn
- The 3 Stephen King movies releasing in 2023 (so far)
Love it or hate it, and let’s face it, the only people who hate the new IT are nostalgia blind from their love of the 1990 version, the 2017 version was leaps and bounds better. In terms of atmosphere, acting and effects, 2017’s IT is a cinematic masterpiece with not nearly as much CGI as some seem to think.
What I do know is, for me at least, the adult half of the original miniseries is where it falls apart. The children in that version are great, but half of the adult cast just weren’t up to snuff with the exception of lead actor Richard Thomas (Bill), Annette O’Toole (Bev) and Tim Reid (Mike) respectively. I think that will change for the coming IT: Chapter 2 with a stellar cast lead by McAvoy as the adult Bill Denbrough.
It’s one thing to scare kids because they haven’t become quite as jaded as we do as adults. We forget the magic of childhood. So when an adult tells you he’s freaked out by Pennywise, that’s a whole different story — one I can’t wait to see unfold on the big screen. We return to Derry for IT: Chapter 2 this September.
Next. M. Night: Glass ends unexpected Unbreakable trilogy. dark
Stephen King fan? Agree the new Pennywise is terrifying? Let the other Losers’ Club members know what you think in the comment section below.