Prior to the release of this year’s adaptation of IT, many fans of the original book and 1990 miniseries adaptation were apprehensive about the production honoring Stephen King‘s seminal novel. While there are many varying opinions about how this new version compares to the ’90 miniseries, there’s no argument that the film’s higher production value allowed for higher quality visual effects, something director Andy Muschietti pursued from early on, as seen in the sketch he recently shared to Instagram.
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The image depicts the story’s iconic opening scene in which Georgie pursues his paper boat down a gutter and encounters Pennywise, only to lead to the child’s demise. The sequence was depicted in the miniseries, but due to the limitations of special effects and censor standards, it wasn’t able to achieve the graphic depiction seen in the film.
Another interesting element of the above sketch is that Pennywise was visualized as having his eyes focus in different directions, a subtle effect that was seen in the finished film. Even more interesting is the fact that Pennywise actor Bill Skarsgard was able to do this on his own without the help of CGI.
“We were talking about the character, and I said, ‘In post-production I’m going to deviate your eyes,’ and he said, ‘I can do it,’” Muschietti told CinemaBlend earlier this year. “He was here in the morning and he was doing the trick. It’s crazy. What are the chances the guy that you picked for the role could do it?”
In addition to deviating his eyes, another one of the creepy factors of the performance was Pennywise’s smile, something which the actor claimed to have been doing since he was a kid.
“My older brother Gustaf, he had this ability to point his lip in a very strange way,” the actor told Conan. “I came up with this character called Yodigan, which is a Swedish name. I would pull my t-shirt up over my head, and I would do this face, and chase my little brother and scare him.”
Get your copy of IT on Digitial HD on December 19 and on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Combo Pack, Blu-ray Combo Pack and DVD on January 9, 2018. Currently, you can pre-order the IT Blu-ray for as much as 31% off on Amazon. If the price drops between the time you order and the release date, you’ll get the lowest price.
