It was a surprise hit last year, although horror movies consistently surprise at the box office so I don’t know when we stop calling it a “surprise” and start acknowledging the expectation, but anyway. It was huge. There is, naturally, a sequel. But the way Stephen King’s book is structured, it will star adult versions of the kids from the hit movie. Can they make that into an equally big hit in 2019? Hopefully. (Tall order—the adult part of the 1990s TV miniseries sucked.) The sequel is slated to shoot this summer, so casting is ongoing. The first of the adults cast was Jessica Chastain, willed into the franchise by the power of the internet. Now, two more pieces are falling into place: Bill Hader and James McAvoy are in talks to join the sequel. You know what that means—IT SPIT
McAvoy is in talks to play grown-up Bill, the main kid turned main adult. I hugely enjoy James McAvoy, not least because of the phenomenon known as “James McAvoy Snots Everywhere”. It’s my second-favorite game to play while watching a movie (first favorite: What Age Does This Movie Think Tom Cruise Is?), and now here is something to look forward to in It: Chapter 2: James McAvoy’s spit takes. I love this phenomenon. It’s like Brad Pitt eating on camera—you don’t know when, and you don’t know where, you just know at some point during the movie it’s going to happen.
I do, seriously, like this casting. McAvoy is a great choice for anything, and I can easily see him doing “nerd pretending he has his sh*t together”. And Hader is up for Richie, taking over from Finn Wolfhard, which makes PERFECT sense. Of course foul-mouthed Richie grows up to be a Bill Hader character, usually a nice guy with darkness in him. And they’re less obvious choices than Chastain, who will undoubtedly do a great job as Beverly because she’s a good f*cking actress, but was so obvious a choice the internet wished for her within hours of It’s release. (Just, in general, we should never give the internet what it wants.) But I like that they’ve gone in a more unexpected direction with McAvoy and Hader. And I really can’t wait to see who drools more in a scene, Bill or Pennywise?
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