Stephen King’s ‘It’ to be 2 films, with ‘True Detective’ director’s help

It’s exciting news for Stephen King fans, and terrifying news for everyone with a fear of clowns: The master of horror’s 1986 novel “It” is finally headed to the big screen, reports Vulture. Filming on the long-discussed project will begin next summer. The book will be adapted into two films, produced by Dan Lin (“The Lego Movie”), with the first one directed by Cary Fukunaga (“True Detective”).

Lin told Vulture the project has received King’s imprimatur: “The most important thing is that Stephen King gave us his blessing. We didn’t want to make this unless he felt it was the right way to go, and when we sent him the script, the response that Cary got back was, ‘Go with God, please! This is the version the studio should make.’”

“It” tells the story of seven children in Maine who are stalked by a shapeshifting monster who regularly takes the form of a clown named Pennywise. The novel takes place in two different time periods; the first film will feature the main characters as children, with the second taking place 27 years later, as the monster returns.

As many horror aficionados remember, the book was adapted into a television miniseries in 1990, with Tim Curry playing Pennywise. No cast members have been announced for the new adaptation.

The news is doubly good for cinephiles who can’t get enough of Stephen King. The author’s massive novel “The Stand” will also be adapted again, this time into four feature films with Josh Boone (“The Fault in Our Stars”) directing, it was announced last month. Matthew McConaughey is rumored to star in those movies as the evil sorcerer Randall Flagg.