Pennywise and the Joker are undoubtedly two very different, yet equally terrifying clowns.
Indeed, It actor Bill Skarsgard has gone on record in the past to differentiate Stephen King’s shape-shifting abomination from the Clown Prince of Crime, but that hasn’t stopped one dedicated fan from compiling a tribute video that pits Pennywise against DC’s cackling villain.
First spotted by the folks at ComicBook.com, YouTube user Mightyraccoon!, who knows a thing or two about brilliantly executed crossovers, has created a world in which the Joker from Rocksteady’s beloved Arkham series confronts Pennywise, and essentially presents a challenge to King’s otherworldly entity. If nothing else, it’s a neat piece of fan service, one that piggybacks on the incredible, record-breaking success of New Line and Andy Muschietti’s It reboot.
As of this writing, It and The Exorcist are currently neck-and-neck on the box office charts with around $230 million apiece – domestically, mind you – though we fully expect the former to break free and cement its status as the highest-grossing horror pic ever released in North America this weekend. And that’s pure horror pic, which rules out the likes of The Sixth Sense ($293M), Jaws ($260M) and Will Smith-led apocalypse drama, I Am Legend ($256.4M).
Getting back to those comparisons between Pennywise and the Joker, here’s what Skarsgard said recently about the Clown Prince of Crime and Heath Ledger’s unforgettable performance, in particular:
I think the biggest difference between Pennywise and the Joker character — or at least Heath Ledger’s interpretation — is that he’s far more based in reality. [The Joker] is sort of this social anarchist, crazy person, and I don’t think Pennywise is the same in that way. He’s not even human, he’s just pure evil.
That pure, unspeakable evil has been banished from Derry, Maine – for now, at least. But with It: Chapter 2 tentatively slated for release in 2019, don’t be fooled into thinking you’ve seen the last of Pennywise the Dancing Clown.
