If you didn’t know, Tim Curry was the first person to bring Pennywise to our screens back in 1990, leaving Bill with huge shoes to fill.
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When it was announced that a movie adaptation of Stephen King’s horror novel It was in the works, many were understandably apprehensive.
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The book is about a monster that can transform itself into its victim’s worst fears, and it mostly takes on the humanoid form of Pennywise, a clown.
In 1990, ABC adapted It into a two-part miniseries, with esteemed actor Tim Curry being cast as Pennywise.
The series was a huge success, and Tim was highly praised by viewers and critics alike for his performance.
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In fact, it didn’t take long for his unnerving portrayal of Pennywise to become an established part of horror lore, with him widely being considered one of the most terrifying clowns in TV and movie history.
Detailing exactly what it was about Tim’s performance that made Pennywise such an instant horror icon, Rolling Stone explained: “He gloats, he giggles, he taunts, he devours the scenery like the monster himself devours middle-schoolers — and he generally sears his way right into the brain of the viewer."
Bloody Disgusting added: “His mixture of pleasant charm with gleeful terror has cemented the character in our minds, filling our slumbers with nightmares.”
So, when the 2017 movie was announced, there was immediate interest in who would follow in Tim Curry’s footsteps — and they were always going to face fierce scrutiny.
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Director Andy Muschietti previously said he had no limits on who he would cast in the role, and was open to anybody — man, woman, young, or old — but it was Bill Skarsgård’s early audition that left Muschietti feeling “mesmerized.”
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Speaking to Esquire in a new profile on Bill, Muschietti said: “One second he can act all cute, and then the next, there’s something ancestral and dark that just appears. His ability to transform is mind-blowing to me.”
Of course, Bill landed the role. However, he admitted to the publication that Tim’s 1990 performance being so iconic put immense pressure on him.
“When you are 26, you don’t feel young at all, but now, looking back at it, I was a kid,” he explained. “It was fairly early on in my career to take on something that had so many eyeballs and expectations on it.”
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Bill also expressed his discomfort at the film studio’s decision to release a photo of him in character before filming had even begun.
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The promotional image was a closeup of Bill in full Pennywise makeup. Half-shrouded in darkness, Bill has a menacing smile on his face, and is glancing up at the camera with orange eyes.
Warner Brothers shared the photo with Entertainment Weekly in July 2016 — more than a year before the movie was released — and sparked an immediate reaction from It fans, with many using this small glimpse into Bill’s Pennywise to share their disappointment in his casting.
The Tim Curry comparisons started almost immediately, and the biggest criticism was that this time around, the clown had been made to look too “evil” instead of just a “regular clown that's out of place.”
“They did a thing that I felt was kind of mean,” Bill said of the studio’s decision to release the image. “I was so incredibly nervous to start this job, and then the internet is having so many hateful opinions on the weird, strange look of the thing.”
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And while Esquire adds that Bill was left unable to sleep due to the online insults, the discourse ultimately shifted his mindset as he realized: “You can only make this performance to please yourself.”
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“It unlocked something in me,” he added. “And it gave me the confidence that I can take on any challenge.”
Thankfully, this approach appeared to pay off, with Bill winning critical acclaim for his Pennywise performance once the movie was released.
Meanwhile, on Thursday it was announced that Bill will be reprising the role of Pennywise for Max’s It prequel series, Welcome to Derry, which he will also executive produce.
- Stephen King
- Bill Skarsgard
- Tim Curry
- Stephanie SoteriouBuzzFeed Staff
