Every Stephen King Book That References Pennywise and IT (There’s More Than You Think)

by

Stephen King is an incredibly prolific author, having written more than sixty novels and hundreds of short stories. He’s created a huge impact on popular culture with memorable characters and stories. His 1974 debut novel, Carrie, was particularly groundbreaking, quickly becoming a film and launching a long history of adaptations of his work. Even now, readers still enjoy his classic tales like The Shining, Cujo, and Pet Sematary, and his new stories are rapidly brought to the screen in movies and television shows.

While Stephen King has written many successful books, Pennywise the Dancing Clown, also known as IT, remains his most enduring creation. Tim Curry’s iconic portrayal in the 1990 miniseries cemented the monster’s place in pop culture, and Bill Skarsgård’s recent work in the IT films and the Welcome to Derry TV series has only increased its popularity. Interestingly, IT isn’t limited to its own novel and occasionally appears in other King stories, hinting at the possibility of more to come for this terrifying creature.

8) Gray Matter

Originally published in 1973, the short story “Gray Matter” has a curious connection to Stephen King’s IT, appearing even before the novel was written. The story features a character recalling a friend, George Kelso, a public works employee in Bangor, who entered a sewer pipe and emerged fifteen minutes later with shockingly white hair and eyes that seemed to have witnessed something terrifying – he described seeing a giant spider. Though written over a decade before IT, fans will recognize these details as significant elements of the novel. The monster’s true form in IT resembles a spider more than Pennywise the clown, and Kelso’s physical and mental state closely mirrors what happens to those who see the Deadlights.

7) Dreamcatcher

Dreamcatcher features a particularly clear connection to Stephen King’s novel IT and its villain, Pennywise, more significant than most other references throughout his work – aside from the very last one. When the characters visit Derry, they discover a bronze statue and a plaque that state:

A message of love to anyone struggling, sent on May 31, 1985, and especially to all children. With love, from Bill, Ben, Bev, Eddie, Richie, Stan, and Mike – The Losers’ Club.

This plaque commemorates a rare gathering of the Losers’ Club after the events of the novel IT, marking the day Pennywise was defeated and a powerful storm hit Derry. However, the plaque has been vandalized with the words “Pennywise Lives,” spray-painted across its surface. Given that the events of Dreamcatcher take place in the early 2000s – roughly 27 years after IT – this graffiti seems to hint at the creature’s possible return.

6) The Tommyknockers

Published only a year after IT, The Tommyknockers is one of the few other Stephen King novels to include a brief appearance by Pennywise the clown. However, this sighting might have been a hallucination experienced by a character named Tommy Jacklin. While driving through Derry, Tommy claims he saw a clown peeking out of a sewer drain – a clown matching Pennywise’s description, with silver-dollar eyes and a balloon-filled glove. It’s not clear exactly when this encounter happens in relation to the events of IT.

5) 11/22/63

This story, though not featuring Pennywise directly, brings characters from Stephen King’s IT into a time-travel narrative. Jake Epping travels from 2011 to 1958, arriving in Derry shortly after the events of the novel. He soon senses something is amiss and learns from a bartender about the discovery of bully Patrick Hockstetter’s body. Eventually, Jake encounters Richie and Bev, two members of The Losers Club, who have already faced and defeated IT as children.

4) Insomnia

While Pennywise doesn’t appear in Insomnia, the story does feature Mike Hanlon, now the town librarian of Derry, in a quick appearance. The novel also references the massive storm from 1985. More significantly, Insomnia’s villain, The Crimson King – a character often linked to The Dark Tower series – is theorized by fans to be Pennywise’s father. The Crimson King even hints at this connection by mentioning that shape-shifting is common in Derry, a clear nod to Pennywise’s powers.

3) Elevation

You might miss it if you blink! In the show Elevation, there’s a quick mention of a band called Big Top who temporarily change their name to Pennywise and the Clowns for a high school Halloween dance. It’s a very brief moment that doesn’t really affect the main story, but it’s a neat Easter egg for Stephen King fans.

2) Later

Stephen King’s 2021 novel isn’t connected to Derry or the characters from IT, and Pennywise doesn’t even get a mention. However, the book does share two important links to the story. The main character, Jamie, can see ghosts and meets one that seems to be controlled by a demon. He discovers a ritual called the Ritual of Chüd – which fans of IT will recognize as the method the Losers’ Club uses to defeat Pennywise. What’s more, after Jamie overcomes the demon, he describes it as a “deadlight,” a term also used in IT.

1) Gwendy’s Final Task

The last book in Stephen King and Richard Chizmar’s Gwendy trilogy briefly revisits Derry, Maine – a town filled with references to “the clown.” One resident recalls being chased as a teen by a laughing clown with razor-sharp teeth and silver eyes. Because the story takes place well after the 1980s, many fans believe King is hinting that Pennywise, the terrifying clown from It, is still alive and haunting Derry.

https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/list/every-actor-that-has-played-stephen-kings-it-and-pennywise-theres-way-more-than-you-think/embed/#

Read More

2026-01-01 16:41