It: Chapter 1 and Chapter 2, the most recent film adaptations of Stephen King’s iconic novel, already cover a broad time period, following the Losers Club as they face Pennywise as kids in 1989, and then again as adults in 2016. The duology’s timeline is about to be extended yet again–beyond even the events of the book–with a prequel series now in production at HBO Max, Variety reports.
The series is curently being called Welcome To Derry, and reportedly will begin in the 1960s. In the mythos of It, the evil being that takes the form of Pennywise the Clown appears every 27 years to wreak havoc on the residents of Derry, meaning the show may be returning to the last instance of the cycle occuring in 1962. This part of the cycle also includes the burning of the Black Spot nightclub by a racist, KKK-like organisation, a scene that was notably glossed over in the recent adaptations.
The director of both Chapter 1 and Chapter 2, Andy Muschietti, will be on board with the new TV series as executive producer, along with Barbara Muschietti and Jason Fuchs, who also developed the show’s story.
If the show does end up going to series, it could be an opportunity to expand on the original book’s rich mythos, giving more attention to the historic tragedies that weren’t given much screen time in the film duology. The series will reportedly also cover some of Pennywise’s ancient backstory, something that initially was intended to be included in It: Chapter One, but had to be cut for budget reasons.
