Don't Miss One Classic Stephen King Movie Prior to It: Welcome to Derry's Next Episode

HBO's Welcome to Derry is filled with connections to the author's extensive collection of tales. Apart from the clear links to the original story, the series showcases a direct connection to King's famous novel via the appearance of a young Dick Hallorann. Currently, as the story progresses, It: Welcome to Derry is integrating one more beloved King story that deserves a revisit.

The Haunting Tale of The Shawshank Redemption

While The Shawshank Redemption isn't typically classified as a horror film, especially compared to a lot of King's other writing, it remains a haunting tale of a wrongfully convicted man sentenced to live the rest of his life inside a notorious penitentiary. It is that very penitentiary that becomes important in this context, since the Shawshank facility possesses considerable history throughout King's fictional world — a pattern which persists in It: Welcome to Derry.

Among the stories which mention Shawshank are Dolores Claiborne, Needful Things, Apt Pupil, 11/22/63, as well as It. Via these narratives, we discover about the awful conditions at the state penitentiary plus some of the inmates within, including the boyfriend of one belonging to Pennywise's early victims, who had been found guilty for robbery with a weapon.

Thus far, though, the most we've learned concerning Shawshank has been through the perspective of Andy Dufresne from Shawshank Redemption, portrayed by the actor Tim Robbins in that 1994 movie. Andy ends up at the prison following being wrongly convicted, then finds himself beaten and raped by other prisoners, while exploited by those in authority figures for his expertise in finance. He requires him 28 years to dig an escape route of the prison, before making his way "through sewage" to reclaim his freedom.

The Prison's Role in It: Welcome to Derry

In relation to It: Welcome to Derry, audiences first learned about the prison's inclusion via an initial preview for the show, in which a prison bus was seen with the name displayed on its side. During the second episode, we learn which character is likely destined for the prison.

Although it is known he did not commit the child deaths initially, Hank Grogan (Stephen Rider), dad to Ronnie (Amanda Christine), gets taken into custody for those offenses. A teaser for the next episode, "Now You See It," reveals a guard telling Hank in his cell, "Are you aware what happens to kiddie killers at that prison?"

The Consequences for the Character and Ronnie

Given that the actual killer in Derry is a primordial entity from another world preying on and killing children, Hank's chances of proving his innocence appear slim. And even if he does go to Shawshank and the audience do not see him inside, knowing what is known about that prison makes it clear that his experience would be far from pleasant.

More importantly, though, this development would endanger Ronnie. He acts as her guardian. Terrible events are occurring in the town which no one, child or adult, understands and Ronnie only has her recently formed of friends to depend on. She will require her dad as the story progresses, but if the prison system has any say, she may be out of luck.

One thing seems clear: Hank lacks 28 years to tunnel to freedom.

It: Welcome to Derry the first two episodes are currently available on HBO Max. New episodes air weekly on Sundays.