With only three weeks to go before shooting was scheduled to begin, “True Detective” director Cary Fukunaga has departed New Line’s upcoming two-film adaptation of Stephen King’s IT. The Hollywood Reporter has the news, bringing word that Fukunaga’s retreat from the project stems from creative differences, specifically over the budget for the planned features.
Published in 1986, IT is described on King’s official site as follows:
A promise made twenty-eight years ago calls seven adults to reunite in Derry, Maine, where as teenagers they battled an evil creature that preyed on the city’s children. Unsure that their Losers Club had vanquished the creature all those years ago, the seven had vowed to return to Derry if IT should ever reappear. Now, children are being murdered again and their repressed memories of that summer return as they prepare to do battle with the monster lurking in Derry’s sewers once more.
The book was previously adapted by Tommy Lee Wallace as a 1990 two-part, three-hour event miniseries on ABC, starring Tim Curry as Pennywise.
Fukunaga also wrote the screenplay for the films with Chase Palmer and David Kajganich and was attached to produce alongside Dan Lin, David Katzenberg, Doug Davison and Seth Grahame-Smith. Although the project recently signed Will Poulter (The Maze Runner) to play Pennywise, it is uncertain at this point what Fukunaga’s departure will have on the project overall. Check back for details as they become available.
UPDATE: Stephen King himself has just taken to Twitter with an update that makes it sound as though the feature will not be moving forward at New Line. We’ll post any confirmation on the matter as soon as it is available.
The remake of IT may be dead–or undead–but we'll always have Tim Curry. He's still floating down in the sewers of Derry.
— Stephen King (@StephenKing) May 25, 2015
