10 Scariest Movie & TV Clowns

Pennywise was the character that arguably popularised killer clowns in modern cinema. He first appeared in Stephen King’s book IT in 1986, before a television adaption in 1990 starring Tim Curry, and then in two films in 2017 and 2019, portrayed by Bill Skarsgard. King stated in a 2013 interview that he came up with the character as he thought clowns were the thing that scared children most.

Pennywise is the main persona of an ancient evil force that preys on children in Derry, Maine every 27 years. He can shapeshift into other characters, using this ability to elicit fear from children so he can feed on them.

There is debate as to which version of Pennywise is the most frightening. Skarsgard is arguably the more monstrous to look at, but this makes it less believable that children would be enticed by him as a clown. Curry’s Pennywise looked friendly when he was luring children to him, then turning horrifying when transformed into the monster.

There is no doubt of the impact the character has had on society and their association of clowns with horror, and he has been used as the inspiration for many characters, even drawing comparisons to the Boggarts in Harry Potter, who use a similar ability to draw out fears in children.