Horror hit It was already a lengthy feature with a 135-minute running time, but the upcoming director’s cut of the film will include another 15 minutes of extra scenes, according to director Andy Muschietti.
The director revealed he is working on an extended version of the film based on the Stephen King’s 1986 novel of the same name and has some very specific scenes he plans to incorporate into the new edition.
“There’s a great scene, it’s a bit of a payoff of the Stanley Uris plot which is the bar mitzvah, where he delivers a speech against all expectations,” Muschietti told Yahoo when asked about the scenes he had a tough time cutting from the theatrical version of the film. “It’s basically blaming all the adults of Derry (for the town’s history), and it has a great resolution.”
According to Muschietti, studio Warner Bros. requested an extended edition of the film for the home-entertainment release of It. It’s unknown when that version of the film will hit shelves, and whether it will be available at the same time the theatrical cut is released.
Muschietti also described a second “very funny” scene he planned to include in the director’s cut of the film — one that extends the scene set in a quarry in which the story’s young protagonists are trying to drum up the courage to jump off a high cliff into the water far below them.
“After the spitting contest, it escalates into something that is completely weird and irrelevant to the scene but is so funny,” Muschietti said. “Jack Grazer, who plays Eddie, does something that is completely bonkers.”
One of the biggest hits of the year, It is the first chapter in a two-part story that will bring back adult versions of the first film’s protagonists almost 30 years after they battled the evil entity Pennywise the Clown. The first film wildly exceeded the expectations of box-office pundits and has already earned $151.5 million in U.S. theaters and $247.9 million worldwide just a week into its theatrical run. The film’s $123.4 million opening weekend was the highest-grossing premiere of all time for a horror movie and the second-biggest debut ever for an ‘R’-rated movie.
The sequel to It is currently in the works with screenwriter Gary Dauberman returning to pen the second film’s script. Muschietti is also expected to return to direct the film, but his return hasn’t been confirmed yet.
