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Posted in: HBO, Max, Movies, TV | Tagged: it: welcome to derry, welcome to derry
It: Welcome to Derry Director/EP on Keeping Pennywise's Origin Vague
It: Welcome to Derry Director/EP Andy Muschietti explains the reasoning behind wanting to keep Pennywise's origin story vague.
Article Summary
- Director Andy Muschietti reveals why Pennywise's origin remains shrouded in mystery in It: Welcome to Derry.
- The series builds on decades of adaptations, keeping the focus on fear and coming-of-age themes over monster lore.
- Past test screenings showed audiences craved Pennywise's backstory, but filmmakers chose to protect the character's mystique.
- It: Welcome to Derry expands on the lore, exploring the town's curse while honoring the successful tone of the movies.
Stephen King's It has never really left the zeitgeist. The story began as a 1986 bestseller, jumped to TV in the 1990 ABC miniseries (which had a significant impact on many, including me), then roared back with Andy Muschietti's two-part films in 2017 and 2019. Now the universe is expanding again with a prequel series, It: Welcome to Derry, which premiered on HBO. with a new episode set for this weekend.
That being said, you could argue that fans already know everything they will be permitted to tell about Pennywise. The character has been dissected (and unmasked) for decades now, from Tim Curry's nightmare-fuel TV turn to Bill Skarsgård's shape-shifting terror on the big screen. Yet the story remains relevant, partly because each adaptation leans into creepy clowns and fear as a shared coming-of-age test, rather than just a monster hunt.
It: Welcome to Derry Director/EP on the Character's Origins & Additional Filming
When recently reflecting on his work with It via The Kingcast, Muschietti took the time to explain how the films balanced mystery with backstory, following audience requests to see more of Pennywise's origins during test screenings. "There was a point in the post-production of It where we do test screenings and stuff… There was a portion of the audience that wanted to know more about origins… we were always like, look, this is what makes it special, the mystery…" He then explained, "But we basically indulged in that and were given the opportunity of doing additional shooting."
Both the reception and results for the two-part story supported that execution. It (2017) immediately garnered strong reviews and became a box office phenomenon, opening to record numbers and ultimately finishing with approximately $702.8 million worldwide on a budget of $35 million. It Chapter 2 followed the same budget, earning the sequel an additional $473.1 million worldwide and solid audience reactions, cementing the two-film arc as a rare horror one-two that worked.
It: Welcome to Derry officially takes the time to expand Muschietti's version of the lore by exploring earlier chapters of the town's curse while keeping the tone aligned with the film's youthful genre perspective. And given how well this world has played with audiences and critics so far, the latest trip back to Derry looks like a smart bet to keep people watching.
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