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| It (2017 film) | |
|---|---|
| Name | It |
| Caption | Theatrical release poster |
| Director | Andy Muschietti |
| Producer | Roy Lee, Dan Lin, Seth Grahame‑Smith |
| Screenplay | Chase Palmer, Cary Fukunaga (screen story), Gary Dauberman |
| Based on | Stephen King's novel It |
| Starring | Bill Skarsgård, Jaeden Martell, Finn Wolfhard, Sophia Lillis, Wyatt Oleff, Jeremy Ray Taylor, Chosen Jacobs, Jack Dylan Grazer, Nicholas Hamilton |
| Music | Benjamin Wallfisch |
| Cinematography | Chung-hoon Chung |
| Editing | Jason Ballantine |
| Studio | New Line Cinema, KatzSmith Productions |
| Distributor | Warner Bros. Pictures |
| Released | 2017 |
| Runtime | 135 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $35–40 million |
| Gross | $701 million |
It (2017 film) is a 2017 American supernatural horror film directed by Andy Muschietti, adapted from Stephen King's 1986 novel. The film follows a group of children in the fictional town of Derry who confront a shape-shifting entity that exploits fears, adopting the form of a clown. Featuring an ensemble young cast and a performance by Bill Skarsgård as the antagonist, the film received commercial success and influenced contemporary horror cinema.
The narrative is set in the 1980s in the fictional town of Derry, Maine, drawing on motifs from Stephen King's Carrie (1974 novel), Salem's Lot, Pet Sematary, and thematic echoes of Stand by Me and The Body (novella). A disparate group of adolescents—outcasts who form a self-styled "Losers' Club"—confront an ancient, malevolent entity that exploits childhood traumas and manifests primarily as a clown named Pennywise. The plot interweaves scenes of supernatural encounters, investigations into historical disappearances in Derry, and escalating confrontations that culminate in an underground battle against the entity in the town's sewers, paralleling structural elements found in adaptations such as The Goonies (film), A Nightmare on Elm Street, and The Exorcist.
The film's ensemble cast includes performances by Bill Skarsgård, whose portrayal draws comparisons to interpretations in The Shining, Sinister (film series), and It (1990 miniseries). The young ensemble—Jaeden Martell, Finn Wolfhard, Sophia Lillis, Wyatt Oleff, Jeremy Ray Taylor, Chosen Jacobs, and Jack Dylan Grazer—evokes influences from casts of Stand by Me, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Stranger Things, and The Sandlot. Supporting roles feature seasoned actors who connect the film to traditions of genre performers seen in Psycho (1960 film), Halloween (1978 film), and The Silence of the Lambs.
Development began as studios including New Line Cinema and producers Roy Lee and Dan Lin negotiated adaptation rights to Stephen King's novel, following previous adaptations like the 1990 miniseries. Director Andy Muschietti, whose earlier work included Mama (film), collaborated with screenwriters Chase Palmer, Cary Fukunaga (credited for story development), and Gary Dauberman. Principal photography drew on locations and crews experienced in major productions such as It Chapter Two, The Revenant, and The Witch (2015 film). Cinematographer Chung-hoon Chung and composer Benjamin Wallfisch crafted visual and auditory textures informed by precedents in horror scoring and cinematography from John Carpenter, Bernard Herrmann, and Dario Argento. Casting sought child actors with prior credits in franchises and series like Stranger Things, The Fault in Our Stars, It (1990 miniseries), and The Hunger Games.
The film premiered amid marketing campaigns leveraging festivals and conventions associated with San Diego Comic-Con, TIFF, and fan communities of Stephen King adaptations such as The Dark Tower (film). Distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, the release strategy included domestic and international rollouts during the 2017 awards season and horror-focused programming blocks akin to releases of A Quiet Place and Get Out.
Critics and audiences reacted strongly, with discourse connecting the film to works by Stephen King and filmmakers like Stanley Kubrick, George A. Romero, and Alfred Hitchcock. Reviews highlighted Bill Skarsgård's performance and the ensemble youth cast, drawing comparisons to the 1990 miniseries adaptation and films such as It Follows, The Babadook, and Hereditary. Scholarly and journalistic analyses situated the film within late-2010s horror trends exemplified by Jordan Peele, Ari Aster, and the resurgence of young-protagonist narratives seen in Stranger Things.
With a production budget reported at $35–40 million, the film achieved substantial commercial success, reaching global box office figures comparable to franchise entries like Jaws, The Conjuring, and Deadpool in terms of return on investment. Domestic opening records and international grosses positioned the film among the highest-grossing horror films, prompting studio decisions reminiscent of sequel greenlighting patterns in Marvel Cinematic Universe and DC Extended Universe releases.
The film reinvigorated interest in Stephen King adaptations and influenced genre production trends, encouraging studios and creators behind properties such as The Shining (novel), The Stand, Carrie (film), and Doctor Sleep to revisit cinematic strategies for adapting large-scale novels. Its commercial model and marketing tactics informed subsequent releases from studios including Universal Pictures, Paramount Pictures, and 20th Century Studios, while its thematic focus on ensemble youth casts contributed to creative trajectories seen in It Chapter Two, Stranger Things (season 3), and other 1980s-rooted nostalgia projects. Category:2017 films