As fans eagerly await the conclusion of Stephen King‘s horror phenomenon “It,” Pennywise diehards may not have to wait long to revisit Derry. Director Andy Muschietti teased a six-and-a-half-hour “It” Supercut while speaking with reporters recently. We also sat down with the “It: Chapter Two” director during which he not only acknowledged the runtime but shed some light on his ambitions for the project.
“Man, news goes fast! I said it yesterday, and I pulled it out of my ass. We’re in early talks with the studio to do it, but my big fantasy is to cut the two movies together and add all of the scenes that were lifted for length purposes in the release,” said Muschietti. “So make a big experience of ‘It’ and also shoot a couple of extra scenes that I’d like to see in this bigger experience. In the age of binging where people just watch series for like 7-8 hours, and they barely notice that they’ve been spending all that time, this is nothing.”
It’s interesting Muschietti should bring up the streaming comparison hot on the heels of Martin Scorsese‘s “The Irishman” having a supposed runtime of three-and-a-half hours. Muschietti’s rationale is precisely the point of contention surrounding much of the runtime discourse. If 2019 has taught us anything, it’s that the binge model of streaming services has given filmmakers an angle to push for longer runtimes. “Avengers: Endgame” was famously celebrated for its three-hour length, but “The Irishman,” Ari Aster’s “Midsommar” Director’s Cut, and even “It: Chapter Two’s” two-hour-and-forty-five-minute runtime have received a mixed reception, which begs the question of how willing audiences are to consume this sort of lengthy content outside of an episodic format? While certainly a case by case basis, Muschietti may have an answer for those trepid about spending a whole day at the theater to see his horror epic.
We did bring up the possibility of the complete “It” experience finding it’s way to Warner Bros‘ new streaming platform HBO Max, and while there was no official confirmation or denial, the filmmaker’s expression and cheeky response perhaps revealed a clue as to the future home for the massive supercut stating.
“I don’t know. Where did I hear that?” laughs Muschietti. “From you maybe? I don’t know.”
It certainly would be a smart move for Warner Bros. to premiere the complete version on their streaming service, which could be used to entice new subscribers with never before seen footage and newly shot sequences giving fans the truest iteration of King’s original vision. Stay tuned for our full conversations with Andy Muschietti and Bill Hader in the coming days.
“It: Chapter Two” hits theaters September 6.