The series about the origins of the most terrifying monster created by Stephen King

BarcelonaWhile they were filming It: Episode 2The second part of the diptych adapting one of Stephen King's most important novels for the screen saw Argentine director Andy Muschietti and Swedish actor Bill Skarsgård begin toying with the idea of exploring the origins of the monster Skarsgård portrays in the film, the child-eating clown Pennywise. "We were particularly interested in his human side," Muschietti explained during the recent Sitges Film Festival. "The book mentions a man named Bob Gray, who would dress up as a clown and become Pennywise. At some point, It decided to take this form to wreak havoc, and that fascinated us." This fascination has now taken the form of a series on HBO Max. It: Welcome to Derry ((available with Catalan subtitles), in which he travels to the 1960s in the small town of Derry to expand the universe of the novel, but starting from "the crumbs that Stephen King leaves in the book for readers to pick up," explains Muschietti. The script is also inspired by "the interludes" written by one of the novel's protagonists, Mike Hanlon, who investigates Derry's history of violence and terror. "They are very enigmatic quests, questions that lead nowhere, but we use them to tell a new, secret story told in reverse," says Muschietti.

This last point is true: while the first season is set in the 1960s, the following two will take place in earlier periods of Derry's history, following the trail of Pennywise's crimes. “That was one of the reasons Stephen King told us, ‘Go ahead,’” Muschietti explains. “He really liked the idea of telling Pennywise’s story in reverse chronological order, with a revelation at the end that people don’t expect.” The first episode, released on Monday, has a very familiar feel, with a group of pre-teens tormented by the disappearance of a friend who find themselves pursued by a supernatural creature. But the déjà-vu It turns to surprise and terror when the end of the first episode reveals that in this Derry, the rules are crueler than in the film.

The first episode of the series introduces two narrative threads that alternate between the child protagonists and Commander Leroy Hanlon, a decorated Korean War veteran stationed at a military base near Derry where the government is conducting secret research. There's no shortage of supernatural monsters and brutal scenes, but although Pennywise's signature is evident, the clown hasn't yet made his appearance. He will. As Barbara Muschietti, the director's sister and producer of the series, reminds us, one of the driving forces of the story is to explore in depth thealter ego Pennywise's human: "Here Bill Skarsgard not only plays an interdimensional monster but also the man who hides behind the clown mask, a very tragic character."

Some Argentinians who are fans of Sitges

The Muschietti brothers are Argentinian, but they lived in Barcelona for many years and have a very close relationship with the Sitges Film Festival. "As a child, my contact with fantasy cinema was through television and French film magazines like Mad Movies"...where there were often mentions of the Sitges Film Festival," the director recalls. "Later, one of my short films from film school was selected for the Sitges competition, but I couldn't come because I spent all my money making the 35mm print." When they moved to Barcelona, they became loyal attendees of the festival and even presented their work there. Mother, the horror short film that they later turned into a feature film produced by Guillermo del Toro and starring Jessica ChastainIn the last edition they presented It: Welcome to DerryBut they assure us they'll be back soon. "Hopefully, we'll present a film," says Andy Muschietti.

The series about Pennywise's origins was one of The three films based on Stephen King stories screened at the last Sitges Film FestivalThe relevance and omnipresence of King's stories in modern film and television doesn't surprise the Muschiettis, who consider themselves children of his novels. "We are the filmmakers we are because of Stephen King, but it's a generational thing," says Andy Muschietti. "Many of today's directors grew up with his stories in the '80s. His tales blew our minds, but they also taught us how to tell a story." Barbara Muschietti emphasizes that King's work "contains a very deep human dimension" and that this "can't be said by many horror writers."

Between horror and superheroes

At a moment ofIt: Welcome to DerryOne of the main characters, a child, is reading a Flash comic – the legendary Flash of two worlds of 1961—, a rather explicit nod to Muschietti's previous film, The Flash, A fun and vibrant superhero film that was met with indifference by critics and flopped (relatively) at the box office. "We're very proud of the film, but it's clear we had an image crisis with our actor, Ezra Miller, who was arrested twice," says the director. [Miller was also accused of harassment, abuse, kidnapping a minor, drowning a woman, and assaulting a partner.] "It's a sensitive issue related to mental health, and the public didn't take it well," he adds.

His sister laments that some people hate the film without even having seen it: "At the height of the cancel culture, Ezra found himself in the crosshairs of both the right and the left; it was the perfect storm." The boy who reads Flash He is also seen reading a Batman comic; the character that Andy Muschietti will, in principle, introduce in a couple of years into Warner's new superhero universe with the film The brave and the bold"I can't explain anything," he apologizes. "If I do, the phone will ring and I'll get booed by James Gunn."