10 Scariest Forms IT Takes That Aren’t Pennywise, Ranked by Fear Factor

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Stephen King’s IT is far more frightening than just the scary clown. The creature hiding beneath the town of Derry, Maine, is an ancient, terrifying being that hunts children. While Pennywise the clown (who may also be known as Robert “Bob” Gray) is its most famous form, it can change its appearance to become each victim’s worst nightmare, allowing it to truly terrorize them.

Whether you experienced it through the 1986 novel, the 1990 miniseries, or Andy Muschietti’s two-part movie, IT tells the story of the Losers Club and their fight against a terrifying creature. Because each character has unique childhood fears and past traumas, the creature appears in over 30 different forms throughout the book. While some of these monstrous forms have already been shown on screen, others remain exclusive to the novel – but could potentially appear in the Welcome to Derry series. Here are 10 of the scariest forms IT takes, besides its iconic Pennywise persona, drawing on the characters’ deepest fears and even what they’ve recently watched in horror movies.

10) The Werewolf

When Richie and Bill first confront IT in the Neibolt House, the monster appears as a snarling werewolf, even wearing a letterman jacket – a clear reference to the movie I Was a Teenage Werewolf. It chases them through the house and down the street, becoming a real-life version of the horror film that frightened Richie. Many believe IT is specifically attacking Richie by exploiting his deepest fear: the truth about his hidden sexual orientation. But perhaps the most unsettling part of this encounter is what happens afterward. Bill tells Richie he didn’t see the werewolf at all – he saw the clown instead.

9) The Giant Bird

In Stephen King’s novel IT, the monster appears to Mike Hanlon as a huge, ancient bird while he’s exploring the old Kitchener Ironworks. King describes the bird’s wings as incredibly wide, casting a shadow over the entire field – a detail that didn’t make it into the movie. This form of IT is particularly frightening for Mike because it plays on his deepest fears. As a baby, he was attacked by a crow, and that fear stayed with him. This combined with a childhood memory of watching Rodan, a 1956 film about a giant flying reptile. Interestingly, decades earlier, Mike’s father, William Hanlon, also saw IT as this same massive bird during the fire at the Black Spot. King’s vivid description and the idea that this fear has been passed down through generations make the encounter especially unsettling.

8) The Mummy

When Ben Hanscom encounters IT, it briefly appears as a decaying Egyptian mummy, slowly approaching him by the frozen canal. The creature’s bandages trail through the snow, and it reeks of death, strongly recalling the classic film The Mummy. Fans have long discussed what Ben’s fear of the mummy represents. Most believe it symbolizes his fear of dying alone and being forgotten. Whether it’s a deeper metaphor or just a basic fear of the undead, the image of this rotting, bandaged IT, carrying the signature red balloons, is terrifying and easily one of the most memorable moments in the story.

7) The Spider

IT’s most frightening physical form is a colossal spider, appearing during the final confrontation with the Losers Club. While terrifying in the book, it’s even more so in Stephen King’s original vision compared to the TV miniseries and the movie It Chapter Two. King portrays this spider as the closest humans can get to understanding IT’s true nature – an ancient, otherworldly being from a realm beyond our own. Seeing the spider pushes the limits of what the Losers can comprehend. Beyond its bizarre appearance, the spider also symbolizes being trapped, like prey caught in a web, waiting for a predator. The Losers all perceived IT as this monstrous spider, positioning it as the source of all the evil that plagues the town of Derry.

6) Betty Ripsom

The disappearance and death of teenager Betty Ripsom is one of the first tragedies that binds the Losers’ Club to the horrors of Derry. Pennywise, the evil entity known as IT, often takes frightening forms, and one of the most disturbing is a decaying corpse seen in the sewers – a body ripped apart by IT itself. This gruesome image appears in both the novel and the 2017 film. IT cruelly uses Betty’s likeness and voice to haunt her parents and the Losers’ Club, and even manipulates Henry Bowers and his gang, appearing as Betty and telling them to commit violence. In the second book, It Chapter Two, Richie and Eddie find only her legs moving towards them behind a terrifying door. For the Losers, Pennywise appearing as Betty is a painful reminder of all they’ve lost in Derry.

5) Alvin Marsh

For Beverly Marsh, the monster IT uses its most painful tactic by appearing as her abusive father, Alvin. Both the book and movie versions of the story show IT mimicking Alvin’s controlling and violent behavior. While seeing the real Alvin is frightening on its own, IT uses this familiar form to tap into Beverly’s deepest fears about being a woman and the horror of being controlled by a man. Beverly’s home life, both as a child and an adult, is particularly nightmarish compared to the other characters. Instead of using claws or fangs, IT becomes an amplified version of the man who dominates her life. In doing so, IT also represents all the corrupt and harmful adults in Derry who are overtaken by darkness.

4) The Leper

Near the abandoned Neibolt House, Eddie Kaspbrak is terrified by a decaying, diseased man stumbling towards him, who shockingly offers him money for a sexual act. In both Stephen King’s novel and the 2017 movie, Eddie struggles to breathe, paralyzed by a panic attack as the creature traps him. This monster, known as the Leper, represents everything Eddie fears – decay, illness, and the outside world. Eddie’s overprotective mother has always told him the world is full of dangers and germs, and IT exploits this fear by appearing as a living, breathing infection. The Leper’s horrifying appearance – covered in oozing sores and with a raspy voice – is especially disturbing in the 2017 film, pushing the scene into body horror territory.

3) Mrs. Kersh

In It Chapter Two, when Beverly returns to Derry, she revisits her childhood apartment and meets Mrs. Kersh, a seemingly sweet elderly woman who invites her in for tea and discusses her father. However, the scene quickly takes a disturbing turn. Mrs. Kersh’s behavior becomes unsettling, the surroundings seem warped, and she transforms into a terrifying, monstrous figure with decaying skin and a grotesquely wide smile. The sudden collapse of her friendly appearance into something horrific is deeply frightening. Though portrayed with a bit more nuance in the book than in the film, Mrs. Kersh embodies Beverly’s anxieties about aging and what it means to be a woman. Her monstrous form likely reflects Beverly’s fear of becoming like the other women in her family – women who are often trapped, mistreated, ignored, and sometimes even become monstrous themselves.

2) Georgie’s Corpse

Both the novel and the 2017 movie version of IT haunt Bill Denbrough by exploiting the memory of his deceased brother, Georgie. When Bill ventures back into the sewer, he’s confronted with the horrifying sight of Georgie’s decaying body – half of his face gone and an arm missing – pleading with him to come play. This scene is incredibly disturbing, sad, and frightening, largely because Georgie’s death is so central to the entire story.

The disturbing way the child’s body is brought back to life is meant to torment Bill with sadness and self-blame, feelings that haunt him throughout the story. Georgie’s death is the most impactful and defining event in Bill’s life. Bill constantly blames himself for letting Georgie play outside in the rain, and the monster, IT, deliberately keeps that pain fresh. Interestingly, the most frightening form IT takes isn’t its monstrous spider or leper appearance, but instead, the form of someone we feel sympathy for. By appearing as Georgie, IT expertly creates the intense emotional horror and dread that Stephen King is famous for.

1) The Deadlights

The Deadlights are the true, terrifying form of IT – an energy from another dimension so alien that simply seeing it drives you insane. In the book, Beverly briefly sees them as swirling orange lights when IT attacks her. The movies depict the Deadlights as the glowing energy inside Pennywise’s mouth, which he uses to lift victims before devouring them. They represent IT’s immense and unknowable power, and perfectly capture the deep sense of fear and dread that haunts everyone in the story.

These monsters embody humanity’s confrontation with death, the concept of hell, and the incomprehensible. While the people of Derry each experience unique fears drawn from their own lives or universal symbols, the Deadlights represent pure, unfiltered fear itself. When Beverly, Bill, and their friends overcome IT, they aren’t just defeating a scary clown; they’re facing the emptiness of existence and refusing to succumb to it.

What version of IT do you think is the scariest, whether from the book or one of the movie/series adaptations? Share your thoughts in the comments and join the discussion on the ComicBook Forum!

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2025-11-13 21:43