Stan's fear of the painting.
As far as I know, this isn't in the book. I wonder what made them think of that.
shareThe director and producer of the film (brother and sister) said it comes from their childhood. Their mother used to have a print of a Modigliani paining, and Andy, the director, was terrified by it as a kid. So given that the kids in It each have a fear of something, the director used his own fear as Stanley's, and so ultimately that's how the scene came to be. It works well for the film and it's kinda neat.
By the way, that figure from the painting (or a very similar looking one) also appears in the director's other movie, "Mama".
Well I was satisfied with what they chose for stands fear that lady was weird looking. I think old paintings often distorted people's appearance so maybe that lady in that painting in reality was not as creepy as the painting depicted. I have seen in real-life women that have sharp features like the woman in the painting but not as exaggerated. Anyway the whole thing was creepy and reminds me when I have seen old paintings of people that for one reason or another give me a weird feeling