Decade of death: 10 greatest horror performances of the 2010s

Stephen King’s IT — Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Bill Skarsgard (It)

I don’t personally know Bill Skarsgard, but I do know the horror community and how much they love Tim Curry’s portrayal of Pennywise the clown in 1990’s made-for-TV adaptation of It. That performance is, after all, one of the most iconic villain turns the genre has to offer. If Skarsgard botched the role, horror fans would have eaten him alive for the rest of his life.

Fortunately, for those bloodthirsty fans and for Skarsgard himself, the actor delivered the goods with his own unique take on the Stephen King villain. While vastly different than Curry’s performance, Skarsgard made Pennywise just as, if not more terrifying than the 1990 version of the character. From his physical presence (Skarsgard stands at 6’4″) to the menacing voice he created for the killer clown, the actor turned in one of the all-time great villain performances.

Not only was Skarsgard giving one of the greatest horror performances of the decade, he was doing it in the most financially successful horror movie ever made. It’s impressive, and we can’t wait to see what he brings to the sequel later this year.