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IT/Characters

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YMMV • Radar • Quotes • ( Funny • Heartwarming • Awesome) • Fridge • Characters • Fanfic Recs • Nightmare Fuel • Shout Out • Plot • Tear Jerker • Headscratchers • Trivia • WMG • Recap • Ho Yay • Image Links • Memes • Haiku • Laconic Source • Setting

The characters present in Stephen King's IT.

Main Characters[]

The Losers Club[]

Bill Denbrough (aka "Stuttering Bill"; "Big Bill")[]

Ben Hanscom (aka "Haystack")[]

Beverly Marsh/Rogan[]

Eddie Kaspbrak[]

Richie Tozier (aka "Trashmouth")[]

Mike Hanlon[]

Stan Uris[]

Main Antagonists[]

IT / Pennywise the Dancing Clown / The Spider[]

A powerful and malevolent being older than time itself that is the natural enemy of the Turtle that vomited up the universe. It landed on Earth in the area where the town of Derry would be built, long before settlers arrived there and preys on the fears of human beings which it stokes by assuming the form of whatever terrifies them the most. IT usually assumes the form of a giant, man-eating spider or a Monster Clown and prefers to prey on children as their imaginations are more powerful and thus give the being more strength.

  • Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking: "I'm here to murder the women, rob the men and do the Peppermint Twist."
  • Ax Crazy
  • Badass Boast: Comes out with these frequently, an example being "I am the Devourer of Worlds and children."
  • Big Bad: Of the book
  • Child Eater: IT prefers to munch on children because their imaginations and emotions are more vivid (read:juicy).
  • Eldritch Abomination: Its true form is actually a "spider" or at least the closest thing the human mind can comprehend.
  • Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep": Whether or not IT even has a true name is unknown but most people simply refer to IT as, well, IT. The entity's clown form is known as Pennywise however.
  • Evil Has a Bad Sense of Humor: Is prone to snide, mocking, sarcastic remarks whilst taunting its victims.
  • Faux Affably Evil: To the kids
  • Giant Spider: Not IT's true form, but probably as close to it as any human is able to perceive.
  • Hoist by His Own Petard: IT shares the weaknesses of whatever form IT takes. Also, if several people all perceive IT as one form and think of IT in that form hard enough, IT becomes "mode-locked" and unable to change.
  • Humanoid Abomination: Initially what Pennywise appears to be.
  • Jerkass: IT regularly taunts the Losers', and often includes a hint of mockery dealing with other victims as well.
  • Kick the Son of a Bitch: In the book, it's possibly only redeemable quality is that that he kills off Patrick who tortures and kills things for amusement.
  • Knight of Cerebus
  • Light Is Not Good: The Deadlights, Its true form.
  • Load-Bearing Boss: After IT is finally defeated, a flood destroys much of Derry later that year. It's implied that IT had allowed the town to exist in exchange for providing IT victims every 27 years.
  • Monster Clown: IT's primary form, Pennywise The Dancing Clown.
  • Monster Is a Mommy: IT is female and protecting its eggs. Unlike most examples, however, this time it's bad news.
  • Not Quite Dead: Pennywise appears in other novels featuring Derry, including some set after IT, and is mentioned in the Dark Tower series.
  • One-Winged Angel: IT's Giant Spider form.
  • Politically-Incorrect Villain: Often uses racism, misogyny and homophobia to taunt his victims and break their courage.
  • Red Oni, Blue Oni: Pennywise/the Spider and the Turtle. One actively hunts down and eats human children while the other just sits on the edge of forever, seeing it all happen and "helping" the Losers during their first confrontation with It. The Spider berates it for just sitting there, offering seemingly useless advice. That the Spider's eyes are described as ruby-red while the Turtle's shell is some blueish-greenish color also reinforces the trope.
  • Shapeshifter Mode Lock: Happens to IT when the entire Losers' Club perceives it as a Giant Spider.
  • Smug Snake: Is convinced that the children are Puny Earthlings that stand no chance against IT but ends up being defeated by them twice. The second time they face IT, the creature's previous defeat at their hands seems to have done little to have tempered its arrogance.
  • This Was His True Form: The Deadlights.
  • Would Hurt a Child

Henry's gang[]

Henry Bowers[]

  • Abusive Parents: Henry's father in the novel and film is very violent toward him. Subverted in the miniseries, where he's only implied to have whipped him twice for Henry getting suspended.
  • Ax Crazy: All versions of him sooner or later are this.
  • The Bully: The most infamous one in Derry.
  • Demoted to Extra: In the film, he's more of a Plot Irrelevant Villain.
  • The Dragon: To IT/Pennywise.
  • Even Evil Has Standards: He is visibly disturbed by Patrick Hocksetter's hobby of torturing and killing animals in the novel, though only slightly.
  • Evil Old Folks: Downplayed with the old part. In the miniseries, he's 44, though he looks well like an old man and he's very deranged.
  • Freudian Excuse: His father is abusive and racist. The miniseries subverts the abuse part however.
  • Hate Sink: In the miniseries, he is a racist and misogynistic Jerkass, and relentlessly torments the Losers Club. He also doesn't have a Freudian Excuse like in the novel.
  • Hoist by His Own Petard: Henry accidentally stabs himself in the heart with his own switchblade.
  • Jerkass: At least initially. It quickly becomes evident that it's much more serious than that.
  • Knife Nut: He Owns A Switchblade Knife.
  • Mean Character, Nice Actor: Jarred Blancard as Young Henry Bowers. According to the DVD commentary he felt really bad for having to use the N word and couldn't be more apologetic to Marlon Taylor (Young Mike) after they finished filming the scene.
  • Never My Fault: Blames Ben for his detention and whipping from his father, when he brought both on himself in the miniseries.
  • Patricide: All versions of him are this, though in the miniseries, merely implied through common sense.
  • Politically-Incorrect Villain: Henry Bowers is misogynist, sexist, racist, homophobic, and an anti-semitic.
  • Sanity Slippage: All versions of him slowly get more deranged, which in the novel, drives his gang away from him, save Patrick Hockstetter.
  • Schoolyard Bully All Grown Up: After spending many years in psychiatric hospital, Henry Bowers escapes with IT's help and almost kills Mike Hanlon.
  • The Sociopath: Goes from merely bullying to much more serious crimes. If he weren't locked up, he'd have spent his life doing many indescribable crimes.
  • Would Hit a Girl: Throws a rock at Beverly in the rock fight.
  • Younger Than They Look: He's only 44 in the miniseries, though trauma and seeing IT's true form make him look much older.

Victor Criss[]

  • The Dragon: To Henry.
  • Even Evil Has Standards: Victor is fine with beating up smaller kids for fun, but shocked by some of Henry's actions (such as trying to carve his name on Ben's stomach with a knife). In the miniseries, this is the only standard kept from the novel.
  • Noble Demon: Not a completely straight example, but, he has some shades of it. He has no problem beating other kids up, but, he will never go as far as to do permanent damage to them. While being chased by Henry's gang before the Rock Fight, even Mike acknowledges that out of all of them, at least Victor doesn't want to do him any serious harm.
  • Only Sane Man: Victor is among the first to realize just how far off the deep end Henry is going, and likely the first to do so on the bad side.
  • Red Oni, Blue Oni: Though never acknowledged as equals, he is the Blue to Henry's Red. This is especially clear in the Rock Fight. Henry got hotheaded, and only got himself hurt even further. Victor kept his cool, and was able to take all the damage Henry's Gang suffered, and return it in kind back to the Losers by himself.

Belch Huggins[]

  • The Brute: He's the largest and in the novel, 1 of the clumsiest members of Henry's Gang.
  • Even Evil Has Standards: Gets increasingly uncomfortable near Henry Bowers and Patrick Hockstetter.
  • Gasshole: Hence the nickname.
  • He's Just Hiding: Henry in the miniseries is implied to think this is the case. Post not seeing him for 3 decades, he can't even tell this is Pennywise, despite Belch looking little different and no older than in 1960.
  • Heroic Sacrifice: After killing Victor IT goes after Henry, but Belch defends his friend by attacking It. However, Henry leaves Belch to fight It alone, though It easily overpowers him and tears half of his face off.

Patrick Hocksetter[]

  • Aerosol Flamethrower: Uses one in the remake.
  • Asshole Victim: Has 0 excuse for the lives he's responsible for ending, which include his baby brother and several animals. He also disturbs even Henry Bowers a little bit and is the only member of the Bowers gang to not feel uncomfortable near him. He's 1 of, if not the least sympathetic of IT's victims.
  • Ax Crazy: Rivals Henry in this department. He tortures animals for fun and took his baby brother's life at the young age of 5.
  • Depraved Bisexual: Fondles the girls in his class, masturbates Henry and offers him oral sex.
  • Enfant Terrible: He murdered his baby brother when he was younger, not because his parents loved him more but just because the poor mite was changing household routine!
  • The Friend Nobody Likes: Henry punches him in the mouth and the other members are even more disturbed with him than Henry.
  • Hate Sink: Creepy, remorseless, sadistic, sexually perverted and murderous, you'll probably hate him more than IT by the end of the book. See below.
  • Humans Are the Real Monsters: Unlike IT, he doesn't even have the excuse of being a primordial embodiment of cosmic evil.
  • Obfuscating Stupidity: His IQ test result is a "low normal" but the narrative tells us that he is actually far more intelligent than his IQ score shows.
  • One-Scene Wonder: His single appearance is one of the scariest things in the whole book.
  • Psycho for Hire: Of The Bowers Gang followers, he's by far the happiest to cause others pain.
  • Sadist: With disturbing sexual overtones.
  • The Sociopath: Even moreso than Henry. He thinks that he's the only real person in the universe (Solipsism), and the only thing that can excite him is killing and torturing other creatures.
  • Token Evil Teammate: Of Henry's followers, he's the only one who finds his insanity fun rather than disturbing. When he helps Henry, Vic and Moose break Eddie's arm, Moose and especially Vic are quick to urge Henry to go. Patrick only goes post Henry going and spitting on Eddie.

Peter Gordon[]

Supporting cast[]

Derry schoolchildren[]

Derry Adults[]

Non-Derry residents[]

Tom Rogan[]

Beverly's husband, a fashion designer with a very predatory and controlling view of women.

  • Abusive Parents: His mother.
  • Asshole Victim: To the same extent as Henry Bowers and his vile brood.
  • Berserk Button: Quite a few things but especially Beverly smoking in front of him as he not only resents inhaling the nicotine but it also serves as an assertion of her individual autonomy.
  • Control Freak: To truly ridiculous proportions.
  • Domestic Abuser: Regularly beats Beverly and ultimately tries to kill her when she rebels against him.
  • Fat Bastard: Spraining his ankle whilst playing baseball has somehow caused him to become grossly overweight.
  • The Dragon: Briefly becomes this to IT/Pennywise.
  • Jerkass: A bullying, domineering wife-beater.
  • Karmic Death: Is very satisfyingly devoured by IT.
  • Sherlock Scan: Analysing Beverly's short nails tells him that she has a tendency to bite them and cuts them to prevent her from doing so and this, combined with her smoking habit tells him that she has bad anxiety which makes her potentially easy to control.
  • Would Hit a Girl: Would punch a girl, whip her with a belt and ultimately try to kill her! He even thinks that he'd "pop the Queen of England" if she "cracked smart" to him.

Audra Denborough, nee Phillips[]

Bill Denborough's wife, a famous and beautiful actress.

  • Distressed Damsel: IT hypnotises and abducts her in order to lure Bill to ITs lair.
  • Does Not Like Shoes: Is described as barefoot in every scene she appears in.
  • Hypnotise the Princess: Not a princess but the same principle applies.
  • Ms. Fanservice: Is a movie star and described as very attractive.

Christine[]

Christine is a car that debuted in the novel Christine. She only appears briefly in the story to  help Henry Bowers get to the Loser's hotel.
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