IT: Chapter Two gets an official R-rating, promising lots of disturbing violence. The two-part film series, based on iconic horror novelist Stephen King’s 1986 book, IT has long been a great source of anticipation - even back in 1990 when the story was split into a two-part ABC TV miniseries which aired over two days.

Today, a two-day wait to see the next installment of IT seems like nothing when compared to the two-year wait that fans have had to endure in order to see the second half of IT’s cinematic adaptation. The first film, which arrived in 2017, told the tale of the Losers’ Club - a group of preteen outcasts in the small town of Derry, Maine who are faced with the unspeakable terror of evil incarnate. The evil of course, has taken the shape of an eerie clown, widely known by IT fans as Pennywise. IT: Chapter One was a huge financial hit, becoming the highest-grossing horror film of all time. With these sorts of considerable achievements for the first chapter in the film series, the prospects for the upcoming IT: Chapter Two are indeed encouraging.

As a matter of fact, those prospects are likely to get even more encouraging now that IT: Chapter Two’s official rating has been revealed. Thanks to the MPAA website, we now know that the upcoming second installment of IT will be rated-R. This isn’t just a standard R-rating, either - the classification indicates that IT: Chapter Two will be filled with “Disturbing violent content and bloody images throughout”. In other words, the sequel has received a hard-R.

It probably won’t come as much of a surprise to fans of IT that the sequel will indeed be quite violent, particularly since the first film didn’t hold back on its depictions of blood and mayhem. We also know that Bill Skarsgard, who plays the homicidal clown Pennywise, has stated that in the second film Pennywise will be even more vengeful and vicious than ever before. It seems that Chapter Two will be the film in which all hell quite literally breaks loose, and IT fans are sure to be bursting with excitement over the prospect.

Still, despite its huge box office success, the first IT film had its share of critics, some of whom felt that the film neglected other aspects of King’s original novel, particularly the fact that the film focused solely on events surrounding The Losers’ Club. Even now, a little more than a month before the release of IT: Chapter Two, there have been numerous concerns regarding characters, scenes, and how the film will compare to the first. Those are all reasonable concerns, but for now, most fans will just be happy to hear that the film has a firm R-rating.

Next: It Chapter Two: Cast & Character Guide

Source: Film Ratings

  • IT Chapter Two Release Date: 2019-09-06