What age is It appropriate for?

It is rated R and PopcornCheck recommends it for ages 15+, based on reading the actual screenplay. The film opens with Georgie's arm being severed by Pennywise in a storm drain and escalates through graphic violence like Claude Heroux's axe massacre of five men, Patrick Hockstettler's mutilated corpse, and disturbing imagery such as a decomposed Georgie puppet and a rotting-flesh apparition in a synagogue mikveh, combined with heavy strong language including a racial slur.

Does It have swearing or bad language?

It has Extreme language. Characters use 'fuck' (15 times), 'shit' (12 times), 'hell' (4 times), and 'damn' (3 times)

It has Extreme violence. Georgie's arm is severed by Pennywise in a storm drain in the film's opening scene

Is It scary for children?

It has Extreme scary scenes. Pennywise repeatedly appears in grotesque forms, including emerging from a storm drain with a distorted clown face and later as a decomposed, puppet-controlled version of Georgie's corpse

Is It OK for Kids?

Name: It
Director: Andy Muschietti
Genre: Horror, Thriller, Drama
Released: 2017
Duration: 135 min
Cast: Jaeden Martell, Jeremy Ray Taylor, Sophia Lillis, Finn Wolfhard, Chosen Jacobs

HorrorThrillerDrama

15+

R⭐ IMDb 7.3 / 102017 · 2h 15m

Andy Muschietti● Script verified

Where to Watch

United States

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Streaming data by JustWatch

What's In It

Based on the actual screenplay

🗡️Violence

Extreme▼

Moments in the script, mildest → most intense

Cartoon / Comedic

Action & Peril

Injuries & Death Shown

Graphic & Disturbing

Georgie's arm is severed by Pennywise in a storm drain in the film's opening scene
Claude Heroux massacres five men with an axe at the Silver Dollar Saloon
Ben is carved with a knife by Travis Bowers, and Travis later stabs Snatch in the stomach
Patrick Hockstettler's mutilated corpse with missing limbs is discovered in a cellar, and Victor is shown being consumed by spiders in a membranous chamber
The final battle in IT's crypt has the kids attacking Pennywise with weapons before burning him with a flamethrower; Eddie also breaks his arm falling through a floor at the Neibolt house
Violence throughout is graphic, bloody, and often disturbing rather than played for spectacle

💬Language

Extreme▼

Moments in the script, mildest → most intense

Mild Words

(damn, hell)

Moderate

(ass, b**ch)

Strong

(sh*t)

Extreme

(f**k)

Characters use 'f**k' (15 times), 's**t' (12 times), 'hell' (4 times), and 'da**' (3 times)
The racial slur 'nigger' is used twice, alongside 'godda**' (2), 'b**tard' (1), and 'a**' (8)
Milder language includes 'cr*p' (2 times)
The language is coarse and frequent throughout, consistent with young teen characters cursing casually and under stress

👻Scary Scenes

Extreme▼

Moments in the script, mildest → most intense

Mildly Tense

Startling Moments

Genuinely Scary

Deeply Disturbing

Pennywise repeatedly appears in grotesque forms, including emerging from a storm drain with a distorted clown face and later as a decomposed, puppet-controlled version of Georgie's corpse
A naked woman apparition with rotting flesh appears in a synagogue mikveh, and Eddie encounters Pennywise inside a kitchen refrigerator
Crows attack the children and block their escape from the second floor of the Neibolt house in an intense, prolonged sequence
Beverly's father displays threatening, predatory behavior toward her that implies sexual abuse, adding real-world horror to the supernatural scares
Stan becomes mesmerized by hypnotic 'Deadlights' in a reflecting pool; scary sequences are generally resolved through the kids fighting back together rather than easy relief

💕Romance

Moderate▼

Moments in the script, mildest → most intense

Crushes & Holding Hands

Kissing & Dating

Suggestive

Sexual Content

Ben writes a haiku about Beverly's hair and leaves it for her as a postcard, and watches her sunbathing at the quarry, clearly smitten
Will holds Beverly's hand during a fight, with a spark of attraction between them
Beverly's father's behavior toward her is portrayed as suggestive and predatory as she enters womanhood, implying abuse rather than depicting romance
No kissing, dating, or explicit sexual content occurs between the kids

🍺Substances

Moderate▼

Moments in the script, mildest → most intense

Mentioned in Passing

Shown Casually

Featured Prominently

Glorified or Abused

Travis and other boys drink Southern Comfort whiskey and shoot fireworks together
Beverly is shown smoking cigarettes regularly throughout the film
Police and townspeople are shown drinking at the Silver Dollar Saloon
Officer Bowers suggests using drugs in dialogue
Substance use is shown casually or as part of troubled/negative behavior, not glamorized

⚡Stimulation

Extreme▼

Moments in the script, mildest → most intense

Gently Engaging

Exciting

Intense

Overwhelming

A fireworks battle on Neibolt Street between the kids and the Bowers gang is loud and chaotic
The chase through the Neibolt house with crows, collapsing floors, and Pennywise is overwhelming and relentless
Sewer sequences involve rising water and multiple obstacles, and the kids are pursued through tunnels and a spider-filled membranous chamber
The final confrontation in IT's crypt includes gravity reversals and falling, making it the most sensorially overwhelming sequence in the film
Sensory-sensitive children and younger viewers may find several sequences too intense to watch comfortably

Parents also checked

Halloween movies that aren't too scary

Insidious: The Red Door

It — Heads Up for Parents

Despite being marketed as a horror-thriller, the film includes a racial slur used twice and an axe massacre of five men at the Silver Dollar Saloon — content parents may not expect given the film's coming-of-age framing around kids on bikes.

About It

A group of outcast kids in 1980s Derry, Maine band together after discovering their missing friends and neighborhood children are being taken by a shape-shifting entity that often appears as a demonic clown named Pennywise. As they investigate, they uncover both supernatural horror and very real human evil in their town, forming a lifelong bond through a blood oath. The tone is a mix of coming-of-age nostalgia and intense horror, with disturbing imagery and real-world trauma woven throughout.

👨‍👧

Best watched together

Themes of child abuse (Beverly's father's predatory behavior), racial violence (the Legion of Decency and the racial slur used twice), and intensely disturbing horror imagery (the decomposed Georgie puppet, the mikveh apparition) are heavy — teens under 17 will benefit from a parent present to contextualize and discuss these elements.

Family Takeaways from It

What it gets right

✓The film portrays genuine, supportive friendship through the blood oath scene where all seven friends commit to loyalty and mutual protection
✓Will's family reconnecting during their trip to Arcadia shows a realistic and hopeful path toward healing after trauma

It Cultural & Values Guide

Cultural & Values Guide

Values & Themes

●Traditional family values

The entire narrative centers on children coming together to protect each other when adults fail them, with Bill's determination to save his little brother Georgie driving the core emotional journey. The Losers Club functions as a protective family unit where loyalty and sacrifice for each other becomes their strength against evil.

Community Notes

Use of the racial slur 'nigger' (2 instances) and depiction of racial violence tied to the Maine Legion of Decency, a KKK-like organization, and The Black Spot tragedy may be sensitive for communities addressing historical racism.

Cast:Jaeden MartellJeremy Ray TaylorSophia LillisFinn WolfhardChosen Jacobs