True Detective's Cary Fukunaga No Longer Directing Stephen King’s It

Cary Fukunaga is no longer directing the feature film adaptation of Stephen King's It for New Line, according to Jeff Sneider of The Wrap.

Fukunaga, who impressed people with his direction of the HBO True Detective mini-series, was reportedly reluctant about compromising "his artistic vision" in order to meet budget cuts that New Line demanded after taking on the project from Warner Bros. weeks ago.

Shooting locations were another issue at the heart of the departure, with Fukunaga expressing a strong desire to film in New York, which is more expensive than other locales. Another source indicated that New Line was getting cold feet about the project in the wake of the less-than-stellar opening of "Poltergeist," which featured a clown in its marketing materials.
- The Wrap

Fukunaga had wanted to split King's It into two films. One would focus on the protagonists as children growing up in a small town where a monstrous creature, that takes the form of a clown, is murdering children. While the second film would show them as adults having to come back to their hometown when it appears the creature has returned. New Line was hoping for a less ambitious adaptation.

I heard FUKUNAGA wanted something classy and artful, like THE SHINING, and New Line wanted a more commercial IT movie. Yes... singular.

— Jeff Sneider (@TheInSneider) May 25, 2015

English actor Will Poulter was set to play Pennywise The Clown. No other actors had been cast.

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