Warner Bros gave the audience the nightmare of their lives in the form of It’s Pennywise the Dancing Clown, and he will continue to haunt them after an HBO executive confirmed that the prequel series is a go.
The It franchise was met with mixed reactions from critics, but its popularity among fans was enough to warrant another iteration. Despite the sequel earning less than the original movie, Max is ready to gamble and bring the story of the famed horror clown into the small screen.
It Prequel Series Reportedly Coming To Max In 2025
During an interview with Variety, chairman and CEO of HBO and Max content Casey Bloys revealed the plans they have for the upcoming year, particularly mentioning the rumored prequel to Stephen King’s It.
And then going into ’25, we will have Stephen King’s “It.” Warner Bros. has done two films — we’ve got a prequel series of that planned as well.
In 2022, the outlet reported Max will be developing a prequel series with the working title Welcome to Derry. The story will begin in the 1960s leading up to the events in the 2017 It movie. “The story is also said to include the origin story of Pennywise the Clown,” Variety claimed.
Last month, Deadline reported that the main villain in King’s horror franchise will reprise his role as Pennywise the Dancing Clown. “Bill Skarsgård is set to star in and executive produce the Max It prequel series Welcome To Derry,” the site stated.
The prequel series is set to expand the movie franchise helmed by director Andy Muschietti. Although the two installments emerged as commercial successes, the critics were harsh on their reviews, especially on the sequel.
The 2017 movie grossed over $702 million at the box office against a budget of $35 million, while the 2019 film failed to live up to expectations and only earned $473 million against the increased budget of $79 million.
Andy Muschietti Breaks Silence On It Franchise’s Criticism
Amid the hate and controversy towards the It movies, director Andy Muschietti remained firm and stood by his own creative vision. He responded via Independent:
For me, Stephen King’s book is so complete, in a way, that you don’t try to make a faithful adaptation of it. You make a movie that would stand in its own right, and people will get it.
Indeed, the not-so-faithful adaptation of the It movies is derived from the filmmaker’s own discretion to follow his vision rather than present it by the book.
He admitted to combining his impressions of the novel after reading it for the first time and as an adult. For Muschietti, it gave him different perspectives. “The studio was incredibly open and accepting of all this, they really wanted to trust my instincts,” he added.
With the prequel series confirmed and already in the early stages, it’s only a matter of time before we learn more information about the plans the studio has in store for fans. In the meantime, It Chapters One and Two are streaming on HBO.
