Stephen King Requested One New Scene Be Added to IT CHAPTER TWO

When it comes to adapting a book into a movie, filmmakers are tasked with a number of challenges, as they have to decide what elements of that original story will translate well to the big screen and what elements must be abandoned. Director Andy Muschietti made a bold move with his adaptation of Stephen King‘s IT, opting to avoid King’s blending of two timelines and instead using the first film to focus on one specific timeline so audiences could connect more strongly with the characters. Luckily, the author not only approved of the project, but also offered notes on the sequel, which included the request to add a new scene into the story.

During a chat with Total Film [h/t SYFY], Muschietti explained that King reached out to him after having seen the first movie to offer notes on the first draft of the sequel, while asking to include “one all-new scene.”

“It was absolutely huge,” Muschietti confessed. “For me, it would be unthinkable when I was 12 or 13.”

Throughout his career, King has crafted hundreds of stories, which have gone on to inspire dozens of films and TV series. Other than promoting those adaptations, King remains pretty hands-off on how they’re developed, allowing creatives to reimagine his works as they see fit. While Muschietti didn’t specify what the scene was, King offering any sort of suggestion on how to improve his own work is sure to offer audiences an even more exciting experience.

In IT CHAPTER TWO, 27 years after the Losers’ Club defeated Pennywise, he has returned to terrorize the town of Derry once more. Now adults, the Losers have long since gone their separate ways. However, kids are disappearing again, so Mike, the only one of the group to remain in their hometown, calls the others home. Damaged by the experiences of their past, they must each conquer their deepest fears to destroy Pennywise once and for all…putting them directly in the path of the clown that has become deadlier than ever.

King’s original novel was set in the ’80s and featured flashbacks to the ’50s, while 2017’s IT took place in the ’80s and IT CHAPTER TWO takes place in the present day. While some fans might not have approved of this change, King understands the shift.

“With IT, it made sense to simply take the idea of the book — which has this 20-year gap between the children and the adults — and move it forward so that we could set the adults in the next movie pretty much in the present-day,” King confessed to Vulture. “Not right in the present day, but pretty close to it.”

IT CHAPTER TWO lands in theaters on September 6th.

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