It’s been just a little over one year since True Detective season one and Beasts of No Nation director Cary Fukunaga walked away from the movie adaptation of Stephen King‘s It, which he had been developing for multiple years and fans seemed extremely excited about, for reasons that made the departure all the more painful.

When this happened it sounded like the movie might be dead, but then just a couple of short months later New Line hired Mama director Andy Muschietti to replace Fukunaga and all was on track again. When Muschietti was hired it was unclear if Will Poulter, who had been cast just before Fukunaga’s exit, would still be playing Pennywise. As it turns out, no, he isn’t. A new actor has now been cast in the role made famous by Tim Curry’s terrifying performance in the two-part TV movie adaptation in 1990.

It’s being reported that Bill Skarsgard, the son of Thor and Good Will Hunting star Stellan Skarsgard and brother of True Blood and The Legend of Tarzan star Alexander Skarsgard, will now be playing Pennywise. The actor is best known for playing Roman Godfrey on the Netflix original series Hemlock Grove, and has also starred in Anna Karenina and The Divergent Series: Allegiant.

Skarsgard joins a cast that includes Jaeden Lieberher (St. Vincent, Midnight Special), Finn Wolfhard (Stranger Things), Jack Dylan Grazer (Tales of Halloween), Wyatt Oleff (Guardians of the Galaxy), Chosen Jacobs (Cops and Robbers), Jeremy Ray Taylor (42, Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip).

It tells the story of a group of children terrorized by an unspeakable evil called It, which takes on various fear-inducing forms including a clown named Pennywise. This evil then returns to torment them once again when they’re adults.

The latest adaptation, much like the aforementioned 1990 TV movie, is planned as a two-part movie. The first film will follow the kids dealing with It, while the second will follow them as adults.

[Source: Heat Vision]