It’s time for Derry to get a new clown for themselves, as apparently, Bill Skarsgård won’t suit up again as the classic villain, Pennywise. During an interview on Jake’s Takes, the actor revealed that he is currently not attached to the upcoming HBO Max spin-off, Welcome To Derry, a prequel television series that will focus on how the terrifying antagonist first came to the small, hopeless town. In the original Stephen King story, it is revealed that the clown is actually an alien, and he feeds every thirty years, making the population of Derry believe that their home is cursed. Here’s what Skarsgård when directly asked if he was coming back:

“As of now, I’m not currently involved with it. If someone else gets to do it, my advice would be: Do it your own. Make it your own. Have fun with it. What I found pleasurable about that character is how abstract he was.”

Skarsgård received plenty of praise after he played the role in Andy Muschietti‘s It. In the 2017 adaptation of the novel, Pennywise hunts a group of children who call themselves The Losers Club. The heated rivalry begins when Georgie (Jackson Robert Scott) makes a paper boat while he is bored on a rainy day. The kid places the boat on the street, allowing it to travel alongside the stream of rainwater that was flowing towards the sewer. When the boat falls into the sewer and Georgie approaches it the opening to retrieve it, he meets Pennywise. The monster rips the boy’s arm off, dragging him into the darkness to never be seen again.

Georgie’s older brother, Bill (Jaeden Lieberher) can’t get past the fact that his little sibling was taken away by a monster in the sewers so, the summer after the original attack, he comes up with a plan to get rid of Pennywise. He wouldn’t be able to do it alone, given how dangerous the monster from another world is. And, after the clown haunts other members of the Losers Club, including Beverly (Sophia Lillis), everyone has more than enough motivation to face their fears and fight against Pennywise. A grueling battle takes place, and the clown is forced to retreat. Nevertheless, Beverly has a vision indicating that the conflict is far from over.

A Rematch Thirty Years in the Making

When the 2017 movie came to a close, one of its most surprising features was the reveal of the actual title of the film being It: Chapter One. Right when the project proved to be a box office hit, Warner Bros. immediately announced the sequel was in production. And, two years later, the conclusion of the fight between Pennywise and The Losers Club would hit theaters, with James McAvoy, Bill Hader, and Jessica Chastain playing the older versions of the main characters. This time around, the group wasn’t going to allow Pennywise to walk away. Now, Welcome to Derry takes fans back to Pennywise’s origins, long before he ever ran into the Loser’s club.

via Collider