It (miniseries)

It also known as Stephen King’s It is a 1990 American ABC two-part psychological horror drama miniseries directed by Tommy Lee Wallace and adapted by Lawrence D. Cohen from Stephen King‘s 1986 novel of the same name. The story revolves around a predatory monster which has the ability to transform itself into its prey’s worst fears, allowing it to exploit the phobias of its victims. It mostly takes the humanoid form of a darkly comedic clown called Pennywise. The protagonists are The Lucky Seven, or The Losers Club, a group of outcast kids who discover Pennywise and vow to kill him by any means necessary. The series takes place over two different time periods, the first when the Losers first confront Pennywise as children in 1960, and the second when they return as adults in 1990 to defeat him a second time after he resurfaces.

A special of the November sweeps month of 1990, It was still a big risk for ABC due to horror’s lack of popularity in television, declining network viewership decreasing the impact of big events like miniseries, and theatrical versions of King’s work being box office bombs. However, they chose to produce it due to the success of Stand by Me (1986) and other television programs based on long books. In order to increase likely viewership, the producers exaggerated the novel’s more positive themes of loyalty and friendship and casted performers most well known outside the horror genre. These included Pennywise actor Tim Curry and Losers Club actors Richard Thomas, John Ritter, Annette O’Toole, Harry Anderson, Dennis Christopher, Tim Reid and Richard Masur. The miniseries’ child cast includes early roles for Jonathan Brandis, Seth Green, Emily Perkins, Gabe Khouth, Laura Harris, and Chelan Simmons.

Produced by Green/Epstein Productions, It was filmed over a period of three months in New Westminster, British Columbia in mid-1990 with $12 million, double the usual television budget. The effects and the designs of the titular antagonist’s forms, including Pennywise and the creature’s true form of a humanoid spider, were produced on a 12-week deadline by Gene Warren‘s Fantasy II, who had a previous portfolio in theatrical work before working on It. Broadcast Standards and Practices constricted the amount of blood and gore it could show, resulting in an unusually psychologically-horrific and character-driven horror production of its time.

Despite the risk factors, mixed pre-airing critical reviews, and coverage of George H. W. Bush‘s foreign trips cutting into the program; It managed to be ABC’s biggest success of 1990, pulling through with 30 million viewers for its two parts. When it came to awards, It was nominated for two Emmy Awards, one Eddie Award, one Youth in Film award, and a best miniseries recognition from the People’s Choice Awards; it won two of the nominations, an Emmy Music Composition Award for Richard Bellis‘ score and an Eddie Award for the miniseries’ editing.

While divided critical perspectives towards It have continued in later years, the miniseries has become most known for Curry’s version of Pennywise. In fact, his portrayal has been considered by several publications to be one of the scariest clown characters in film and television. It has also spawned an Indiegogo-funded documentary film about the miniseries’ production, named Pennywise: The Story of IT (2019); and an alternate history sequel short named Georgie, also by the producers of the documentary and bringing back original Georgie actor Tony Dakota.