Stephen King 'It' Movie Adaptation Not Pushing Through? Director Cary Fukunaga Exits Pre-Shooting

The remake adaptation of Stephen King's horror novel "It" has been put on hold after director Cary Fukunaga dropped out of the project.

According to sources including The Hollywood Reporter, Fukunaga exited New Line's adaptation of King's 1986 novel because of budgetary concerns and opposing creative visions. The filmmaker gained fame after his work on the HBO series "True Detective."

Together with Chase Palmer, the 37-year-old director wrote the script for "It" set to be split into two films, Rolling Stone reported. The first one will focus on a group of kids called the Losers Club who defeated an evil creature called It, which sometimes takes the shape of a murderous clown named Pennywise. The second movie will reportedly center on the same children -- now adults -- who will return to Derry, Maine and team up again to put an end to It once and for all.

Production already announced that "We're the Millers" and "The Maze Runner" actor Will Poulter will portray Pennywise, which was originally played by Tim Curry in the 1990 original adaptation, PEOPLE reported. However, it's unconfirmed whether Poulter is still attached to the role now that Fukunaga departed from the project. The film's whole production is also in question.

After news about Fukunaga's exit came out, King tweeted: "The remake of IT may be dead--or undead--but we'll always have Tim Curry. He's still floating down in the sewers of Derry."

Rolling Stone noted that "It" was transferred from Warner Bros. to New Line, which then "demanded additional budget cuts" and ordered to move production from New York to a less expensive location.

The Hollywood Reporter noted that the first film is set for a $30 million budget with shooting expected to begin in three weeks. The timetable couldn't be met because "the script was still being reworked" despite the principal photography's imminence, the news outlet added.

At a Tribeca Film Festival panel with former Focus CEO James Schamus last April, Fukunaga expressed his excitement over the remake of "It," explaining that at the time, he was eight weeks away from starting production in New York. The Hollywood Reporter also wrote that the project "would have marked the first movie he filmed in New York City since film school."

The news outlet also described "It" as "a passion project" for Fukunaga, adding that the director has been developing the adaptation for many years now. His plans, however, went against New Line's vision, especially on the movie's casting process.

Now that he is no longer involved with "It," Fukunaga is set to turn his attention to an anti-bullying drama from "Brokeback Mountain" screenwriters, Rolling Stone reported. The movie will tell the true story of Joe Bell and his teenage son Jaden, an openly gay high school student who killed himself after being bullied for his sexuality.

SlashFilm added that Fukunaga will also work on a TV miniseries based on Caleb Carr's "The Alienist."