The Derry Chronicles Could Have Unraveled a Longstanding Pennywise Mystery

The clown's influence on the children of Welcome to Derry molds them throughout their adult lives, transforming them into the very adults who keep the community's pattern of animosity alive. The creature finds easy targets on children from fractured households — children who often grow up to repeat the identical behaviors as their parents. However, the Hanlon household distinguishes itself as a rare example of a households that remains intact, which could clarify why Mike, even after choosing to stay in Derry, remains the sole member who doesn't completely succumb under the clown's influence.

The Hanlon Family's Unique Resilience

In episode 4 of Welcome to Derry, Leroy Hanlon finally becomes more aware of the paranormal entities enveloping the community, especially when the entity starts haunting his child, Will Hanlon, during their fishing trip. The Hanlon family comprises a small number of adults who are cognizant that things are not right with the town, especially Leroy, who was revealed to be sensitive to psychic abilities when he was capable of sensing Dick Hallorann's use of it in episode 3. Subsequently, Leroy sees one of Pennywise's signature inflated orbs outside his house. The ability, coupled with his failure to feel fear, combined with the base of his household, may be why he's capable of perceiving the entity's manifestations. But what if that psychic sensitivity is hereditary, and one of the reasons Mike Hanlon is among the few adults in the town who didn't lose themselves to the town's malevolence?

The boy is part of the group of children at his school being tormented by Pennywise. All his school friends come from dysfunctional families, with parents who don't believe they're being targeted. The reason Will is being haunted is due to the viciousness of the town, paired with his likely receptiveness to psychic abilities, which renders him vulnerable. This family are fundamentally strangers in the town during the early sixties, which lends itself towards the family feeling something is off about the town from the onset. They also have a solid base that remains unbroken, unlike the folks who come from the area, with relationships that have decayed within.

Backstory Connections

Based on the It novel, we know the juvenile Will will find himself at the Black Spot, where the psychic will save him from a blaze that the local KKK members of Derry will cause. In the 2017 movie, we observe that he has a son named Mike and that Will ultimately dies in a configration, with Leroy surviving his own son and taking his grandson in. The official story in the motion picture is that Mike's parents were on drugs, but given our current view of him in the series, that's difficult to accept. Perhaps the timid youth, once he grew up, turned to drink to free himself of the hauntings, or maybe the rotten environment got to him initially, with the KKK ultimately completing the task it started years ago. Be it via the terror of Pennywise or through the malice of the community, seeded by Pennywise, the creature in the end gets the final victory on him.

The Father's Evolution

These occurrences would clarify how Leroy changes so radically from what we see in It: Chapter 1 and the prequel. In his later years, he appears resentful and much harsher with his discipline. Because he outlived his own son, it's comprehensible to see such a drastic change. Nonetheless, his statements hold greater significance since we are aware he's seen Pennywise's hauntings and the impacts they had on his child. In the initial sequence of the movie, we observe the boy hesitate to use a stunning device on a sheep at the family property. His grandfather chastises him for hesitating and offers an analogy that results in a kill-or-be-killed scenario.

“There are two places you can be in this existence. You can be in the open like we are, or you can be in there,” Leroy states as he points to the sheep. “You dawdle indecisive, and someone is going to decide for you. Except you won't know it until you feel that projectile between your eyes.”

Looking back, this could be a bit of prediction, something he wishes he had told his own child. Perhaps he wishes he had done something in his past, but for some reason, he couldn't resist the repellent allure of Derry.