King stated in a 2013 interview that he came up with the idea for Pennywise after asking himself what children feared "more than anything else in the world", and feeling that the answer was clowns.

Why does Pennywise choose to be a clown?

King decided for IT to predominantly take the shape of Pennywise the Dancing Clown because he believes "clowns scare children more than anything else in the world." IT influences the adults of Derry to passively ignore it and not interfere with his attacks on Derry's children.

How did Pennywise become evil?

Pennywise was always evil - or, more accurately, he never really existed. He was just a creation of IT to lure in children so they could be terrified and then eaten. Or so that IT could create chaos, incite riots and spread fear.

Why is Pennywise referred to as IT?

Since Pennywise's true identity is unclear, due to its shape-shifting abilities and being from another universe, ITs real name and species are also called Deadlights, but few know this, which is why it is referred to as IT.

Who is Pennywise scared of?

Stephen King's IT introduced readers to a one-of-a-kind creature that can take any form, the most common one being Pennywise the Dancing Clown, and as menacing as it is, this creature has one big enemy it's truly scared of: Maturin, the turtle.

It Analysis: Why Pennywise is Actually a Good Clown

What is Pennywise backstory?

In the novel, It's origins are nebulous. He took the form of a clown most frequently, Mr. Bob Gray or Pennywise, but his true form is an ancient eldritch entity from another universe who landed in the town that would become Derry by way of an asteroid and first awoke in 1715.

What type of God is Pennywise?

If you want to get technical, It is an alien, but It's origin goes well beyond that. It is actually an ancient cosmic deity. A god of destruction, not just of our world, but of multiple worlds and even multiple universes.

Why can t adults see Pennywise?

They reach the conclusion that Pennywise has all of the adults under some sort of spell that prohibits them from seeing him. The adults of Derry are shown to be villainous in their own right as well. The adults of Derry are shown to be true villains of the story in the same way as Pennywise.

What is Pennywise's real name?

It can manipulate weak-willed people, making them indifferent to the horrific events that unfold, or even serve as accomplices. In the novel, It claims that its true name is Robert "Bob" Gray, but decided to be named “It”. Throughout the book, It is generally referred to as male, usually appearing as Pennywise.

How does Pennywise have a daughter?

Kersh tells Beverly she's the daughter of a carnival worker who happens to look just like Pennywise. As explained in Stephen King's IT, this man is Bob Gray — and IT, that pesky inter-dimensional force of evil, stole his likeness. For 85-year-old Gregson, the character of Mrs. Kersh was initially even more mystifying.

Why does Pennywise eat humans?

In both the book and the films, It is an ancient alien creature, older than civilization, and in King's novel, older than our universe. It feasts on the flesh of humans simply because our fears are easy to manifest and they make us taste better.

Why did Pennywise choose Derry?

Pennywise pretty much made Derry the perfect place for a creature like itself to live, and with the whole town under its control and with a lot of children (and adults) to feed from, IT didn't really have reasons to leave Derry.

What is Pennywise famous line?

Quotes. It : I'm every nightmare you've ever had. I'm your worst dream come true. I'm everything you ever were afraid of.

Why does IT come every 27 years?

IT arrived on Earth through an event similar to an asteroid impact, landing in what would later become Derry, Maine. Once there, IT adopted its usual pattern of hibernation that lasted between 27 and 30 years, awakening to kill and eat and then going back to sleep.

Why did Pennywise turn into a baby?

And if his victim believes him to be powerless, he will become powerless. And so the group figures out that their best bet is, essentially, to bully the bully: They mock Pennywise, telling him he isn't scary. Humiliated, Pennywise begins to shrink, transforming into an almost Benjamin Button–like, melted clown-baby.

Why does Pennywise only target kids?

Pennywise targets children instead of adults because they are easier to scare and manipulate. Their fears are often simpler, more direct, and easier for Pennywise to exploit.

Does Pennywise have a gender?

Throughout Stephen King's It, Pennywise is referred to as a male, but author Stephen King pulled a fast one on readers in the It book ending by revealing the creature's true form was a pregnant spider, implying that it is, in fact, biologically female.

What did Pennywise do to Georgie?

Pennywise offers Georgie his boat back, but when Georgie attempts to reach out to it, Pennywise grabs Georgie's arm and bites it off, leaving Georgie to bleed to death in the rain.

What is Pennywise's age?

The novel explains that IT landed on Earth during an asteroid impact and established itself under the land Derry would be later built on, and initially preyed on indigenous tribes. From that point of view, IT/Pennywise would be billions of years old, but his clown shape wouldn't be that old.

Why does Pennywise say float?

A common interpretation of this phrase is that it refers to where the souls of IT's victims go after they die, as they wouldn't go to heaven nor hell, staying instead in the “deadlights”, which would be a sort of limbo, thus “floating” in that middle point for eternity.

Is Pennywise a demon?

But, the film makes clear, It (sometimes written as “IT”) isn't just a clown. Oh no. As detailed in King's novel, he's an ancient, cosmic being, described in the novel as an “Eater of Worlds”, who is able to adopt a variety of nasty guises.

Does Pennywise eat children or fear?

It describes that it prefers to kill and devour children, not by nature, rather because children's fears are easier to interpret in a physical form and thus children are easier to fill with terror, which It says is akin to marinating the meat.

How many kills did Pennywise get?

Pennywise's Kills Add Up Over Time

The number is then multiplied by the number of times Pennywise has awakened -- once every 27 years throughout the 270-year history of Derry, equaling ten times -- to come up with a final tally of between 12,000 and 18,000 dead.

Who does Pennywise turn into?

After the Losers show Pennywise they're not afraid anymore and are ready to fight it, the clown takes some hybrid forms to try to scare the group: Pennywise/burned arms for Mike, Pennywise with the head of the woman from the painting for Stan, Pennywise with spider legs, Pennywise with the head of a mummy for Ben, ...

How tall is Pennywise?

Pennywise, portrayed by Bill Skarsgård in It (2017), is 6 foot 3.5 inches (1.92 m) tall. What makes a good horror villain? Villains in horror movies are the heroes of the movies. Good horror film villains should be a multi-dimensional character, but the audience should never feel sorry them.