It’s been a hotly debated role ever since it was decided that IT would be getting a remake. Tim Curry was and is still considered by many to be the ultimate Pennywise when it comes to the popular Stephen King movie. With Bill Skarsgard however people are already scared to death of the star of the show and his portrayal of the homicidal clown. There’s nothing to say yet that he’s on par with the great Tim Curry, but time will soon tell since IT comes out very soon and will give audiences a chance to decide for themselves just how Skarsgard stacks up against Curry.
Thus far he’s treated the role with a great deal of respect. What he admits to not being sure about was how the kids would react to his presence as the clown. According to Bill he and the kids were kept apart for much of the time before filming so as to keep the reactions as real as possible. Once Bill and the young actor that plays Eddie Kaspbrak were thrust into a scene together he describes the scene as one of great intensity. Bill hit his mark as Pennywise and was acting completely psychotic, making Eddie cry and gibber like a madman as Bill was admittedly wondering if he was doing any real damage to the kid.
Imagine his surprise when the actor, Jack, replied by saying that he loved what Bill was doing and that he should keep it up. No doubt Bill was quite surprised by this reaction and even a bit confused that a kid of Jack’s age wouldn’t be simply terrified and close to wetting his pants. This alludes to the fact that Bill does say early in the interview that the kids seem so professional at such a young age that he couldn’t help but be impressed.
Bill also goes on to say that he never really saw himself as being a genre actor but has found that it’s got some promise. He’s not too sure about horror but with this kind of performance it seems like it might be something he’s uniquely good at.
It doesn’t seem like he’s going to be quite as playful as Tim Curry’s Pennywise, but maybe that’s a good thing. What this would mean is that Bill took a role and made it his own, which would preserve Tim Curry’s legacy and insure that the character survives without any need to constantly compare the two. Of course diehard fans will always continue to compare them, but in all honesty it’s kind of impossible to do so. The reason for this is that the time period for each actor was very different, and such the effects that were available for the character were vastly different.
The Pennywise of now is going to benefit from a host of special effects that Tim Curry’s character just didn’t have. If you judge just based on this however then you’re missing the point of the character. The main point is who played it better in their own way?
Each man seems poised to be remembered for this role in a fond and very distinct way.
Follow Us
