Yesterday I was tagged in a throwback photograph which involved a clown at a seven-year-old’s birthday party.

It took me a while to recognise the clown, though, partly because he was dressed as colourfully as the children in front of him, and partly because my subconscious just blocked him out.

I, like many, find clowns scary AF.

But for those of you who enjoy the horror associated with the red-nose, white-face, wig-wearing entertainers, the latest adaptation of Stephen King’s It will tickle your fancy, red balloon and all.

Of course this isn’t the first time the masterpiece has found itself on the screen – here’s Wired:

When Stephen King’s horror novel It came out in 1986, the book’s arrival was part publishing event, part worldwide dare: Weighing in at 1 138 pages and carrying a then-shocking sticker price of $22.95, King’s epic was a backpack- and budget-busting time-sucker that many readers dragged around for months on end, and that others abandoned before the 50-page mark.

So it wasn’t until a few years later, when ABC broadcast a hugely successful two-night TV version, that It crept out of the sewer and into mainstream consciousness, thanks in large part to Tim Curry’s giddily nasty portrayal of Pennywise, the killer clown who torments a group of friends from the 1950s through the ’80s.

The four-hour It remains a goony delight, full of blood-splattering balloons and creepy-crawly fortune cookies and genuine intra-character connection. And even though the whole thing wound down with a campy killer-spider attack—and was forced to adhere to prime-time standards—the TV version of It still mostly floats.

But unlike many adaptations of King’s horror stories (The Shining, Carrie, Maximum Overdrive), the latest version of It has also impressed the hell out of those who have watched the film, including King himself who gave it his approval.

Here’s the trailer, which will no doubt hinder any sleep you plan on getting tonight – especially if Pennywise has been the subject of your nightmares since the first time you were introduced:

Yeah, I am good, thanks.

[source:wired]