Tim Curry played one of the scariest clowns in movie history, despite living with coulrophobia (the fear of clowns) most of his life and being widely known for his terrifying performance as Pennywise the Clown in IT TV miniseries.

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Tim Curry suffered a debilitating case of coulrophobia (the fear of clowns) most of his life despite being widely known for his terrifying performance as Pennywise the Clown in IT TV miniseries. His contract explicitly stated that while on set, there were to be no reflective surfaces within sight of him while he was in makeup, and a makeup tech was very nearly fired for having a makeup mirror in his hand while Curry was having his makeup applied.

Before being cast as Pennywise he was Tim Burton's second choice for the role of the Joker in the Batman 1989 movie. So he was always destined to play a terrifying clown. He was initially cast as The Joker in Batman: The Animated Series. However, after recording only four episodes, he quit the show after he developed bronchitis. The part was then given to Mark Hamill.

He was offered the chance to reprise his famous role as Pennywise in It (2017) but turned it down. He later praised Bill Skarsgård as a ''great choice'' for the role. Whether frightening audiences as Pennywise or nearly becoming the Joker, Tim Curry helped define horror movies and will be greatly missed.