Far be it from me to kink shame, but I feel like it’s probably OK to ask questions when someone wants to bone a murderous supernatural clown.
While coulrophilia is not a well known fetish, there are those amongst us whose motors start humming when presented with white face paint and red noses. And there are enough of them that clown fetish performers, such as Miss Quin, are able to foster a respectable following.
According to Vice, many self-confessed coulrophiliacs point to the silly, fun and less serious nature of clowns as a point of attraction. In an interview with Vice, a coulrophiliac going by Blitz explained, “It’s all about the freedom to act silly and not take sex too seriously. Sex is often high pressure, with the ideals of perfect bodies, pleasing your partner, and romantic evenings. Clown sex is spontaneous, silly and awkward intentionally, making it a different kind of fun.”
Some are also excited by the combination of this silliness with an aspect of humiliation. Redditor coulrophilia said in an AMA, “I’m really into the humiliating aspect of it, first of all. Clowns are going to make fun of you and everything you do and every sound you make. They’re going to embarrass and degrade you even if they’re not being intentionally hurtful — I really like that.”
But while no doubt there are coulrophiliacs who are elated at the flood of clown-related material recent horror film It has generated, sexual attraction to Pennywise is a little different to your average clown fetish. This surge of interest in circus-themed sexual relations doesn’t appear to be solely attributable to coulrophiliacs climbing out of their ridiculously tiny car. While Pennywise the Dancing Clown can be silly at times, it isn’t a defining character trait, and he’s more one for taunting and straight up murder rather than humiliation.
Instead, it seems that many individuals who are otherwise unimpressed by giant shoes and squirting flowers now want to bone the shapeshifting helldemon.
the new pennywise has a fondness for throat grabbing. choke me daddy. pic.twitter.com/Td5JPN3XUa
— KatsOnFirex (@KatsOnFirex) September 9, 2017
Of course, there is the contingent that just wants to bang actor Bill Skarsgård. Though Your Tango editor Rebecca Jane Stokes pinned her initial attraction to Pennywise on his similarity to past paramours (“… show me a tall, immature man in makeup who is obsessed with keying into all of my greatest fears while also draining me of my life’s essence and you’ve basically just described every musician I dated in my 20s”), she felt some validation upon viewing the actor out of costume. But that’s still a little like finding Andy Serkis physically attractive and thus wanting to bang Gollum.
I think I want to fuck Pennywise pic.twitter.com/eMsfeJ5Uwr
— emma (@haxrryst_) August 23, 2017
Damn daddy make me float #BillSkarsgard #ITMovie #itclown #Pennywise pic.twitter.com/WEoyFgs9Qx
— ?undead witch? (@queenofthdead) September 14, 2017
As a result of this confusion, there are those who have been sure to make it very clear in no uncertain terms that they want to screw child murderer Pennywise the Dancing Clown, not Bill Skarsgård. And while this clarification is appreciated, it does raise the question: What the hell?
There is no question that Pennywise is a morally reprehensible character devoid of a conscience, and in reality would make a very bad partner. However, sexual attraction to murderers, also known as hybristophilia, is a more commonly known sexual fetish than coulrophilia. Katherine Ramsland PhD writes that some women who are attracted to serial killers “believe they can change a man as cruel and powerful as a serial killer. Others ‘see’ the little boy that the killer once was and seek to nurture him. A few hoped to share in the media spotlight or get a book or movie deal.”
Then there are some on the internet who just like fantasising about the visceral experience of being devoured. Which Pennywise, with his razor sharp rows of teeth, has demonstrated he is more than happy to accommodate.
In fact, his shapeshifting and other supernatural abilities mean that he is well suited to accommodating a variety of fetishes, floating many people’s paper boats.
Like this post if you’d fuck pennywise the clown and you want him to choke you like this. pic.twitter.com/4maBQNSauE
— Victory@MozFest???????? (@KrissyVictory) September 13, 2017
All I want is for pennywise is to grab me by the neck, lift me up, slam me into the wall and fuck me into oblivion as I barely breathe ????
— big momma (@katiemelaugh1) September 14, 2017
Perhaps that’s part of his appeal. The sheer versatility offered by a being able to Silly Putty himself into any shape means he can be everything and nothing to everyone and no-one at the same time. Pennywise can never disappoint, because you can never expect anything from him. All you know for sure is that every encounter with him will be an intense experience. He is the bad boy turned up to 11, easily transplanted into the common fantasy of being singled out for special treatment by an otherwise gruff and antisocial individual.
And while some individuals are attracted to real serial killers, because Pennywise is kept in the realm of fiction he is a safe avatar for unconventional sexual exploration. The fantasy is of losing control to him, but the fantasiser retains control of the fantasy, twisting, supplementing and altering his narrative to suit their desires. Pennywise’s morality is not a serious issue because no real children were harmed in the making of this sexual fantasy. Thus their fictional deaths only serve to further his narrative as a (very, very, very) bad boy, in lieu of a motorcycle and leather jacket. I can only assume that if he were given a motorcycle and leather jacket, it would create a creature so sexy that it could launch 10,000 paper boats.
But still, what the hell?
Nobody told me how hot pennywise is in this damn movie ? Fuck yeah take me to ur sewer daddy make me float.
— Shanis Ian (@shan_w0w) September 15, 2017
How you gonna watch IT this weekend and not wanna fuck that clown though
— . (@AVRGCharles) September 4, 2017
i wanna fuck the it clown
— drama queen (@isakyikey) September 14, 2017
i want daddy pennywise to fuck me w his massive spooky clown dick
— ???????????????????????? ???????????????????? (@hauntedpetals) September 15, 2017
I’m not going to link the fanfics. But know that they are out there.
If you or someone you know are attracted to the malevolent boggart, here’s a Tumblr blog dedicated to the clown-based sexual fantasies of those who want to bang him. Go, be with your people.