IT (Stephens)

## IT 2017

**Stephen King’s successful novel *IT* turned into a miniseries on television in 1990. Then 27 years later, they released the film *IT: Chapter One* in 2017. *IT* became the most successful movie of 2017 with the biggest opening day of a horror film. This film is known as the best adaptation of a Stephen King novel. This successful movie has communities formed around it, such as fans and also haters. There are also fans and haters of Stephen King, who is very involved with these communities. Fans have created fandom sites about King and all of his works, down to every little detail. Communities like these help made *IT* into such a successful movie.**

## Knowledge Communities

**While there are fan communities created around *IT*, there are no spoilers. Since the book came first, people knew what to expect in the movie. However, the new movie, *IT: Chapter Two* is coming out in September 2019, and nobody is really sure what all is going to happen in this new film. There is not a novel for the second movie, which could lead to spoilers. It’s already been released that in the second movie, the Losers’ Club will be adults, as they look back on their adventures with Pennywise during their childhood. At the end of the first movie, Pennywise went back down his hole, and the audience thought that it was the end of It. However, it is rumored that It never and will come back in the second movie. It is also rumored that even though It only tortures children, It will now haunt the Losers’ Club as adults since they were able to get away as kids. As these fans may not have gone to the same extremes as the spoilers of Survivor, they still have some way of finding information before it is formally released.**

**As with any successful film, there has been a fan community based around Stephen King and *IT*.**

**There is a Stephen King Wiki that includes several links to other fandoms created around King’s works such as *Castle Rock* and *IT*. The main page starts off with a short biography of Stephen King, describing him as the “King of Horror.” It then goes into a long list of all of King’s novels with links to each one. Along with the novels, it includes links to his short series collections, movies, and television shows. Each link gives a synopsis of King’s works. This site also includes King’s social media pages as well as news about his television shows and movies that are coming out soon.**

**Fans have created separate fandom sites to King’s *IT*. On the page for *IT: Chapter One,* fans have given away the entire plot of the movie. This section is full of spoilers as they describe every important scene in the movie. on the page, there is the whole cast list with links to each member. The fans have also included a whole list of differences between the 2017 film and the novel and miniseries. These fans have found every little difference between these three works. Next, there is a trivia section that gives readers random knowledge about the film, like “As Georgie is about to die, there is a cat that witnesses it. Likely a reference to *Cat's Eye*, a movie based off two of King's short stories: "Quitters, Inc." and "The Ledge.” Stephen King’s works are known to reference each other. Finally, this site ends with knowledge on the sequel, which leads me to the next fandom site, *IT: Chapter Two.* This Wiki site is much shorter, as the movie has yet to come out. They give a short synopsis of the film: “27 years later in 2016, the Losers Club have grown up and moved away from Derry, until a devastating phone call brought them back due to the children murdering by the returned animalistic clown It (also known as Pennywise The Dancing Clown) again.” The website also includes information on the release date, which is September 6, 2019.**

**There is another fandom site about It the creature. The site starts off with a description of It, describing him as “...an ancient alien/eldritch monster and the title character and main antagonist…” “It is a shapeshifting creature known as a Glamour and is billions of years old. Although it lived on planet Earth for many years, it originated in a void/dimension outside the regions'** *'***of space known as the Macroverse.” They also include a short biography on the shapeshifting creature, even though there is not a lot known about it. origins are given, along with its history and timeline. Fans also created a little section about his personality and behavior with subcategories such as harassment, manipulation, narcissism, and hunger. The site continues with a description of its horrific appearance, its powers along with its weaknesses. There is a list of all of its victims and the many forms it takes throughout the movie, such as a headless child and an infected leper. Finally, fans finish off the site with several quotes from It and a gallery full of pictures from the 1990 miniseries and the 2017 film.**

**There is another important fandom site that focuses on the Losers’ Club. It is a shorter site as it describes the history and background of the club as well including the members and links to their own Wiki sites. It also includes a list of their enemies along with a gallery of pictures from the 2017 film.**

## Remediation

**Fans have also created fanfiction based around *IT*. There are a lot of different websites that are tributed to fanfiction solely about *IT*. There are several versions were Georgie comes back, where the Losers’ Club is haunted by Pennywise every summer, or where one member of the club dies off each year. No matter what the story, this fanfiction allows for the film to become even more popular as readers become interested in the original form. Stephen King reads the fanfiction and gets ideas for other works. Like how E.L. James’ fanfiction about *Twilight* turned into the best-selling book, *Fifty Shades of Grey*, a fan’s story of *IT* could become the next best-selling horror film. Fanfiction brings fans together in a positive way that brings more attention to the film. Who knows, one of the fanfiction stories could be the basis for the second movie.**

**Along with fandom sites, there are also fans who write fanfiction about Pennywise. There are several stories that have been written and they all have their differences. A user by the name of Faunling writes his own version called “Pennywise x Reader.” The whole story is written using the word “you”, putting it in the perspective of the reader. In the story, the character has a normal day but that all changes when they notice that there is nobody else in town. The story mentions flashing Christmas lights, which makes me think that the author wanted to connect the story to Stranger Things. When the author has you meet Pennywise, it is is very similar to when Georgie met Pennywise in the sewer. In the movie, Pennywise mentions popcorn, and in this fanfiction, Pennywise mentions ice cream. From there, the horror grows as the author writes a sex scene between the character, which is the reader, and Pennywise. The writer does not give a clear ending, but the character did not die, as he wrote a second chapter. In the second chapter the character has a dream about another sex scene with Pennywise ut ends this chapter by the character waking up from the horrible nightmare.**

**There is another fanfiction story based around a new character, Reina. In this story, “Branded Loser,” the plot is the same with the same characters from the movie, but now it is told in Reina’s perspective. She begins to hang out with Bev and eventually the Losers’ Club. She is the first one that has experiences with Pennywise but does not tell anybody. She is unlike Bev though, as she is very shy and reserved. The author actually stated at the end, “I just wanted to point out why I made this character very weak and unlike Beverly. I have read a lot of fanfics, and all of them have another girl, who I personally think steals Beverly’s whole point in the Losers’ Club.” Reina also seems to have more encounters with Pennywise than the rest of the group. My only theory is that she is still very shy, and does not consider them all friends yet, and Pennywise notices that she is weak and alone, so she is an easy prey. The author releases a new chapter of this fanfiction, and the readers are responding to it. With every chapter, the author posts questions for the readers to answer. The readers also argue over love connections within this fanfiction. Some argue for Beverly and Bill and some argue for Reina and Bill. It is very interesting to see an audience’s response to a fan’s response to the movie.**

**In another fanfiction called “An Unusual Love Story,” the main character Hana is not afraid of Pennywise. In fact, she is very nice to him, and in return, he is pleasant to her. He leaves Hana little notes with balloons, and while most people think the balloons are creepy, Hana thinks they are sweet. The story goes along with Pennywise trying to haunt and terrify Hana, but she will not be scared. He even kidnaps her to scare her, but it does not work. After a while, the two characters fall in love. I think it is an interesting take on Pennywise. The clown is not even thought of as a real person, let alone having feelings. His main goal is to terrify, not to love and be happy. In every fanfiction I have read, Pennywise terrifies all of the characters. This is the first story I have read where someone who encounters him, is not afraid. Fanfiction can be very interesting and it allows fans to create their own version. Fanfiction can also grow into something like its own book or movie. It can also give the author of the original story ideas that they can use in different chapters or sequels.**

## Interpretative Disputes

**Along with fans, they are always haters. On the website Variety there is an article about what people are saying about the movie. The article starts off by saying that Stephen King’s films and television adaptations struggle to bring the “Horror Master’s” visions to life. “Despite early signs looking good for Andy Muschietti’s *IT*, audiences still have reason to be slightly leery of its launch to the silver screen.” Several haters had middling things to say about the film. Variety‘s Andrew Barker wrote that *IT* “feels like the flashier half of a story” and that “King fans will surely appreciate the clear effort and affection that went into this adaptation, even as it struggles to become'** *'***more than the sum of its parts.” They Critics made comparisons to other Stephen King movies and were disappointed with the lack of horror in the movie. Many haters agree that the movie is more comical than scary and Pennywise the Clown is too cartoony**.

**On the website Horror Freak News, writer Joshua Millican discusses his view of the film. He focuses on the computer-generated imagery (CGI) in the film. He also was surprised with how cartoonish Pennywise seemed when he watched the trailer and hoped that the movie would not look as cheesy, which wasn’t the case. “The opening scene, as well as the scene where Pennywise emerges from a projected image and another scene where Pennywise shows Bev his “Deadlights” all look incredibly fake.” Comparing the 2017 film to the miniseries, Millican believes that Pennywise is scarier in the miniseries. He brings up the point that this movie had a $35 million budget, which is small for a major studio release, which is probably why so many scenes and effects were so cheesy. Either way, the success of *IT: Chapter One* probably means that the budget for Chapter Two will be much larger.**

**There are the fans who are always comparing the books and the movies in favor of the book. As**

**many people like to point out differences, certain haters are looking at Stephen King’s novel as better than the 2017 film because the film omitted or changed some scenes and characters. It is able to shape-shift into different monsters, usually what scares the children the most. The movie does not include the same monsters that the book describes. Also, the time period between the two is different. And in the book, the members of the Losers’ Club are all adults looking back on their childhood, while the movie is showing only their childhood. There are several other differences that fans have found, but critics use these differences as a way to prove the book to be better than the movie.**

**Then there are fans who hate the new Pennywise, because of his**

**wardrobe “...Janie Bryant revealed that she drew inspiration from the Medieval, Renaissance, Victorian and Elizabethan eras for his new look. “The costume definitely incorporates all these otherworldly past lives, if you will. He is definitely a clown from a different time," Bryant told Entertainment Weekly.” She told Entertainment Weekly that It’s costume has a child-like quality. “ “The pants being short, the high waistline of the and the fit of the costume is a very important element.” However, fans do not like this new Pennywise because of the new costume. They do not think that Pennywise is as scary or creepy as Tim Curry’s Pennywise in the 1990 mini-series. Two fans think that Pennywise looks like the combination of Shakespeare and Renaissance babies or the child of the Red Queen and the Grinch. The new movie received just over a simple costume decision.**

## References

 - Stephen King Wiki

 - IT: Chapter One

 - IT: Chapter Two

 - IT: The Creature

 - The Losers' Club

 - Pennywise X Reader: Chapter One

 - Pennywise X Reader: Chapter Two

 - Branded Loser

 - An Unusual Love Story

 - Variety

 - Horror Freak News

 - Book vs. Movie

 - Pennywise's Wardrobe

1. ↑ https://stephenking.wikia.com/wiki/Main\_Page
2. ↑ https://stephenking.wikia.com/wiki/It:\_Chapter\_One\_(2017\_film)
3. ↑ https://stephenking.wikia.com/wiki/It:\_Chapter\_Two\_(2019\_film)
4. ↑ https://stephenking.wikia.com/wiki/IT\_(creature)
5. ↑ https://stephenking.wikia.com/wiki/Losers%27\_Club
6. ↑ https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12658598/1/Pennywise-x-Reader
7. ↑ https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12658598/2/Pennywise-x-Reader
8. ↑ https://www.quotev.com/story/10358099/Branded-Loser-An-IT-Fanfiction
9. ↑ https://www.quotev.com/story/10089899/An-Unusual-Love-Story
10. ↑ https://variety.com/2017/film/news/it-stephen-king-movie-review-roundup-1202549102/
11. ↑ https://horrorfreaknews.com/time-discuss-elephant-room-cgi/20483
12. ↑ https://www.indiewire.com/2017/09/stephen-king-it-movie-book-differences-comparisons-clown-1201873725/
13. ↑ https://www.ibtimes.com/why-fans-hate-new-pennywise-clown-stephen-kings-it-movie-reboot-photo-2403140