Clowns Are Losing Work Because Of Stephen King's 'It'

The re-boot adaptation of Stephen King's 'It' might be one of the most hugely anticipated movies of the year, but not everyone is happy about it. In particular, genuine clowns are worried that it's affecting their chances of getting hired for children's parties and other events

Coulrophobia, the fear of clowns, ranks number 88 in the top 100 most common fears according to FearOf.net - and that's largely not helped by the fact that there are so many horror stories, books and films associated with murderous versions of these comedy performers. Now there are a lot of sad clowns in the entertainment business who just aren't getting the appreciation for their work.

Pennywise, the shape-shifting alien from Stephen King's 1986 novel 'It', is one of those contortions. Adapted into a primetime mini-series in 1990 starring Tim Curry, the character reached a much broader audience including children, and now it's getting a second wind with the upcoming movie starring Bill Skarsgard.

'It all started with the original It', Pam Moody of the World Clown Association told The Hollywood Reporter. 'That introduced the concept of this character. It's a science-fiction character. It's not a clown and has nothing to do with pro clowning.'

'People had school shows and library shows that were canceled', she continued. 'That's very unfortunate. The very public we're trying to deliver positive and important messages to aren't getting them.'

To make matters worse, last year saw Halloween marked by the resurgence of 'killer clowns'; that is, pranksters that would dress as scary clowns while wielding knives or baseball bats and chase people in the street. It got to the point where the police got seriously worried and advised people to rethink their Halloween costumes lest they get arrested for terrorising the public.

'Last year we were really blindsided', says Moody, citing one incident where a clown friend was targeted while sitting in her car outside waiting for her appointment at a children's birthday party. 'She looks up and there are four police officers surrounding her. Someone in the neighborhood called in a clown sighting.'

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We have to say, though, we're going with Stephen King's thoughts on this topic. Clowns are just terrifying.

'The clowns are p***ed at me. Sorry, most are great. BUT... kids have always been scared of clowns', he said on Twitter. 'Don't kill the messengers for the message.'