Make Time For This Legendary Stephen King Cinematic Before It: Welcome to Derry's Upcoming Installment
HBO's It: Welcome to Derry is filled with connections to Stephen King's wide-ranging universe of narratives. Beyond the clear ties to the original story, the series also features an explicit link to The Shining through the appearance of the youthful Dick Hallorann. Currently, as the narrative progresses, It: Welcome to Derry is weaving in another beloved King story that deserves a revisit.
The Powerful Story of The Shawshank Redemption
Although The Shawshank Redemption may not be classified as horror, especially in contrast with a lot of the author's additional work, it remains a haunting tale about an wrongfully convicted individual condemned to spend the rest of his life inside a notorious prison. And it's that very institution which is important here, since Shawshank State Prison possesses considerable history throughout King's stories — a pattern which persists within Welcome to Derry.
Among the tales that reference Shawshank are Dolores Claiborne, Needful Things, Apt Pupil, 11/22/63, and It. Via these stories, we discover about the terrible life at the state penitentiary plus some of the inmates there, such as the boyfriend of one belonging to Pennywise's early victims, who was found guilty of armed robbery.
So far, though, the most we have discovered concerning Shawshank was via the eyes of the protagonist in The Shawshank Redemption, played by the actor Tim Robbins in that 1994 movie. Andy winds up at the prison following his wrongful conviction, then finds himself beaten and abused by fellow inmates, and taken advantage of by those in officials in power due to his expertise in finance. It takes him 28 years to dig an escape route from Shawshank, prior to crawling "through sewage" to take back his freedom.
Shawshank's Role in It: Welcome to Derry
In relation to the series, viewers initially discovered of Shawshank's inclusion from an initial preview for the series, in which a correctional transport appeared with the name displayed on its side. During the second episode, we learn who is likely destined for Shawshank.
Though it is known he was not responsible for the child deaths in the first episode, the character Hank Grogan (played by Stephen Rider), dad to Ronnie (Amanda Christine), gets taken into custody for the crimes. The preview for the next episode, "Now You See It," shows a guard telling Hank in his cell, "Do you know what happens to kiddie killers at that prison?"
The Consequences for the Character and Ronnie
Considering that the actual killer in Derry is a primordial entity from another world hunting and killing kids, Hank's prospects of proving his innocence appear slim. And even if he does go in the prison and viewers don't follow him inside, knowing what is known about that prison indicates that his experience would be far from enjoyable.
More importantly, however, this development could threaten Ronnie. Hank is her protector. Horrible things are occurring in the town which no one, young or old, understands and she just has her recently formed circle of pals to rely on. She will require her dad as the story progresses, but if Shawshank plays a role, she may be without help.
One thing seems clear: Hank doesn’t have 28 years to tunnel to freedom.
It: Welcome to Derry episodes 1 and 2 are streaming now on HBO Max. New episodes air weekly on Sundays.
