HBO Max’s ‘Welcome to Derry‘ Prequel to ‘It‘ Progresses, but Bill Skarsgard’s Return as Pennywise Uncertain
HBO Max’s prequel series to Warner Bros’ two-part adaptation of Stephen King’s It has been given the green light and is currently in the production stage. Titled Welcome to Derry, the showrunners for the series are Brad Caleb Kane and Jason Fuchs. Skarsgard’s participation remains uncertain for now. Despite being announced in March 2020, it was only last month that the series was officially given the go-ahead by HBO Max.
Skarsgard was asked about Welcome to Derry during a Jake’s Takes interview, if there’s any chance he would play Pennywise again – and if not, what advice he would give to the next Pennywise. Skarsgard said, “We’ll see what they come up with and what they do with it. As of now, I’m not currently involved in it. If someone else gets to do it, my advice is to make it your own. Have fun with it. What I thought was so pleasurable about that character was how incredibly abstract he was. If you start reading Stephen King’s cocaine-binged book, you just go like, ‘What the hell?’ There’s so many weird tantrums and abstractions that you can kind of sit and decipher. That’s what I did with the character and I really enjoyed that aspect, it informed the character. The book is really a gift that way. So if someone would take it on, it’s just, go through the book and find the clues, and they’re so out there you can kind of make your own conclusions to them.“
Welcome to Derry Prequel to It Enlists the Muschiettis, Fuchs, and HBO Max as Executive Producers
Andy Muschietti and Barbara Muschietti, the sibling director/producer team behind the two It movies, will executive produce Welcome to Derry through their production company Double Dream. The show’s showrunners, Brad Caleb Kane and Jason Fuchs, will also serve as executive producers. The series is being produced by both HBO Max and Warner Bros. Television.
Jason Fuchs has penned the script for the show’s premiere episode, based on a story developed with the Muschiettis. Additionally, Andy Muschietti will helm several episodes of the series, including the first installment.
