The First ‘It’ Trailer Will Make You Scared Of Clowns All Over Again

Seventeen years after the It miniseries taught the world an important lesson about storm drains — that lesson being, avoid storm drains — the Losers Club and a certain terrifying clown are back. Directed by Andrés Muschietti (who took over when Cary Fukunaga departed the project over an “inoffensive, conventional script”) and based on Stephen King’s novel of the same name, It stars Bill Skarsgård as Pennywise, who still carries around his signature balloon, but that’s where the comparisons to Tim Curry’s clown end.

“It’s such an extreme character,” Skarsgård said. “It’s beyond even a sociopath, because he’s not even human. He’s not even a clown. I’m playing just one of the beings It creates… It’s important that we do something fresh and original for this one. It’s purposely not going toward that weird, greasy look.” That’s a long way of saying: can’t sleep, clown’ll eat me.

Here’s the official plot synopsis:

When children begin to disappear in the town of Derry, Maine, a group of young kids are faced with their biggest fears when they square off against an evil clown named Pennywise, whose history of murder and violence dates back for centuries.

The trailer confirms that It — which also stars Jaeden Lieberher, Jeremy Ray Taylor, Sophia Lillis, and Finn Wolfhard — takes place in the 1980s, and only features the kid versions of the main characters, unlike the miniseries. A planned second film, set in the present-day, would catch up with the Losers’ Club as adults. It haunts your dreams beginning September 8.