Bill Hader and James McAvoy in Talks to Join Jessica Chastain in 'IT' Sequel

With the follow-up to 2017's IT set to begin filming this summer, new actors are reportedly joining IT: Chapter 2 that will play the adult versions of the characters introduced in last year's film. James McAvoy and Bill Hader are rumored to be in talks to join the sequel, which has reportedly tapped Jessica Chastain to officially join the film.

McAvoy is in talks to play Bill Denbrough, according to The Hollywood Reporter, who is considered the unofficial leader of the Losers' Club. The character was played by Jaeden Lieberher in last year's film. Hader is in talks to play Richie Tozier, previously played by Finn Wolfhard. Chastain will be playing Beverly, played by Sophia Lillis previously.

Interestingly, both Lillis and Wolfhard have previously confirmed they wished Chastain and Hader would play the adult versions of their characters, due not only to physical resemblance but also based on their acting talents. Lieberher has previously expressed interest in seeing Christian Bale portray the older version of his character.

Another confirmed star for the film is Bill Skarsgard, who will once again portray Pennywise the Dancing Clown in the follow-up.

From director Andy Muschietti, the previous adaptation took a big risk by bringing to life Stephen King's massive novel, as many horror fans had fond memories of the 1990 miniseries adaptation of the story starring Tim Curry as the nefarious clown. The risk paid off, as last year's film went on to gross more than $700 million worldwide.

In King's novel, a group of children is tormented by an otherworldly threat lurking the town of Derry, Maine. The kids confront the threat, thinking they've solved all their problems, only for those problems to surface again 27 years later.

The previous adaptation utilized the same fractured timeline, jumping back and forth between the events unfolding with young characters and their adult counterparts. For his adaptation, Muschietti wanted to focus solely on the earlier timeline in hopes of audiences connecting more with the characters before eventually depicting the horrors they face as adults.

Given the massive success of the 2017 film, the upcoming sequel is sure to draw in some big names to fill out the rest of the cast.

Filming on IT: Chapter 2 is set to begin this July and will hit theaters on September 6, 2019.

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[H/T The Hollywood Reporter]