People hate clowns. It’s a universally understood fact that they’re pretty terrifying, which is likely why they make such good fodder for horror films. Their rep wasn’t helped any further with last year’s reported homicidal clown rampages, but with a new adaptation of Stephen King’s It coming in September, nobody is really looking to book any spooky clowns for their children’s birthday party.

This hasn't gone unnoticed by the World Clown Association. The president, Pam Moody, released a press statement claiming that they “believe the art of clown is something to be treasured and enjoyed by audiences worldwide. We bring a happy, joyful, creative, caring, positive, and fun experience to our audiences” and that in her opinion, horror clowns, such as the one in It, “are not clowns. Even the character in the movie It should be understood to be a fantasy character – not a true clown.”

It goes on a bit about the difference between film and real doctors and hockey players before calling for an end to “the traumatisation of individuals and communities by horror characters in public. Anyone making a threat of violence should be arrested, whether this person is wearing a mask or not. This clearly is not the act of a professional clown”.

They recommend that young children not be exposed to horror movies, but what they’re kind of missing is that clowns have always been spooky and unnerving. Plus, if kids don’t like clowns, it’s probably because they’d rather have Elsa at their birthday party. Or whatever it is they’re into now. Moody, who also works as a professional clown, told The Hollywood Reporter that when a fellow clown arrived early for a birthday party looked up to see “four police officers surrounding her” because “someone in the neighbourhood called in a clown sighting”.

You can read our cover story with Bill Skarsgård, who will play Pennywise in the 2017 It adaptation, here.