“You’ll float too.”
The classic line from the Stephen King horror story It is now the tagline for the new movie iteration, which is set for release in September.
The first trailer for the movie adaptation (it was previously a 1990 TV movie that traumatized an entire generation of kids) is creepy, and gives us a look at the new Pennywise the Clown (Bill Skarsgård), originally (and terrifyingly) played by legendary actor Tim Curry.
READ MORE: ‘It’ movie: Pennywise the Clown is back to terrify you
In the story, seven kids are terrorized by “It,” a monster that’s able to transform into whatever people are afraid of. It is the embodiment of your fears: that is, It can take any form. If you’re afraid of birds, for example, It can transform into a huge bird that’ll peck your eyes out.
It usually appears in clown form to appeal to children and resides in the sewers under the town of Derry, Maine. Only kids and those who believe in It can actually see It, so adults aren’t really much help.
Pennywise (and whatever form It is in) puts people into a trance with its “deadlights,” essentially putting them into a waking coma.
Changes for the upcoming version include a time shift from the ’50s to the late ’80s (a cinematic hotbed for horror) and a strict focus on the characters when they’re kids. The 1990 version featured a second part where the kids are grown up and still facing It, but this iteration only plans to address their adult lives if the first movie is a box-office success.
READ MORE: Filming of Stephen King’s ‘It’ remake disruptive to local residents
For Skarsgård, playing Pennywise is the role of a lifetime.
“It’s such an extreme character. Inhumane,” Skarsgård, 25, said to Entertainment Weekly. “It’s beyond even a sociopath because he’s not even human. He’s not even a clown. I’m playing just one of the beings It creates.”
“One of my best friends is completely traumatized by the original film version of It,” he continues. “He has a clown phobia, and he was maybe five or six when he saw it, which is way too young, and he had an older sibling who made him watch it. Now he’s scarred for life.”
The movie is set for release in 2017 and will be directed by Andrés Muschietti (Mama).
(You can watch the trailer, above.)
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