When Warner Bros. first began developing its adaptation of the Stephen King horror classic It, the initial plan was to shoot it as a single film, before the studio decided to go down the same route as the TV miniseries, splitting the book in two and following the Losers Club as children in the first movie, before catching up with them as adults in the sequel.

Since then, we’ve heard very little about whether the studio intends on sticking to the two-movie format, while director Andy Muschietti has recently added a couple of projects to his slate in the Robotech movie and Locke & Key pilot., casting some doubt as to whether that remains the plan. However, the filmmaker has now revealed to Variety that the second movie is indeed happening, and will likely shoot in 2018.

“We are doing [two films],” said Muschietti. “We’ll probably have a script for the second part in January. Ideally, we would start prep in March. Part one is only about the kids. Part two is about these characters 30 years later as adults, with flashbacks to 1989 when they were kids.”

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SEE ALSO: New images and concept art from Stephen King adaptation It

When children begin to disappear in the town of Derry, Maine, a group of young kids are faced with their biggest fears when they square off against an evil clown named Pennywise, whose history of murder and violence dates back for centuries.

It is set for release on September 8th, 2017, with Andy Muschietti directing Bill Skarsgard (Hemlock Grove) as Pennywise alongside Jaeden Lieberher (St. Vincent), Finn Wolfhard (Stranger Things), Jack Dylan Grazer (Tales of Halloween), Wyatt Oleff (Guardians of the Galaxy), Chosen Jacobs (Cops and Robbers), Jeremy Ray Taylor (Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip), Owen Teague (Bloodline), Sophia Lillis (A Midsummer Night’s Dream) and Nicholas Hamilton (Captain Fantastic).