If you weren’t waiting in a mile long line outside of Constitution Hall on Friday afternoon what were you even doing? The Fan Expo convention was fortunate enough to be graced with a rare appearance from the esteemed British actor Mr. Tim Curry, known for some iconic roles in films like Legend, It, and of course, The Rocky Horror Picture Show. The star took the time to reminisce with fans about some of his fondest memories on set, as well as share his thoughts on the new highly anticipated remake of the horror classic, It. 

For a lot of you, Curry was a large part of your childhood whether you knew it or not, playing roles that would send one spiralling into hysterics. At the panel it was evident he hadn’t lost his perfect comedic timing, sending the audience into fits of laughter every other minute, and that’s what fans tend to remember most about a lot of his earlier performances. Whether he was playing the busy-body hotel concierge in Home Alone 2, or everyones favourite pirate Long John Silver in Muppet Treasure Island, we of course can’t forget his fantastic turn in some animated classics, of which he remarks The Wild Thornberrys was his absolute favourite to do. Curry then paused for a lengthy while trying to sort out which film of his impressive body of work was his top choice, finally settling on the 1985 classic murder mystery, Clue. As he did quite a few projects working with young actors, he expressed his sympathy about the hardships child actors went through starting out so young. Outing his young costar Macaulay Culkin in Home Alone, Tim said “he would watch cartoons all night, so he wasn’t always in the best shape,” but nonetheless it was a pleasure working together.  

The actor also admitted that he was genuinely looking forward to the new It remake because he hopes the film will get some stuff right the second time round. “I hope they make the end better because it wasn’t at all scary back when I did it,” he states, also suggesting that from the looks of the trailer, Pennywise’s new look is much more sinister and a clear departure from the original, and so he can’t wait to see the full effect in theatres.

Ultimately, the actor had many words of wisdom to bestow on his all too eager fans. But the best advice he could have given to a future aspiring actor was perfectly and simply Tim Curry. Show up. Work hard, know your lines, and just show up prepared. And with that, the film and theatre legend left the upcoming panels of Fan Expo with a lot to live up to.