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

The series It: Welcome to Derry is filled with connections to Stephen King's extensive library of stories. Apart from the obvious links to the original story, the show includes an explicit connection to King's famous novel through the cameo of a young future chef of the Overlook Hotel. Now, as the story unfolds, Welcome to Derry is weaving in another classic King story which merits another look.

The Powerful Story of The Shawshank Redemption

While Shawshank Redemption isn't typically classified as a horror film, especially compared to much of King's other writing, it is a haunting tale of a innocently imprisoned individual condemned to live his remaining years in a infamous prison. It is that very penitentiary which is important in this context, as the Shawshank facility holds significant history across King's fictional world — a tradition that continues within Welcome to Derry.

Among the stories which mention the prison are Dolores Claiborne, Needful Things, Apt Pupil, 11/22/63, and It. Through these narratives, we discover regarding the awful life inside Shawshank State Prison plus several of the inmates within, including the partner of one belonging to Pennywise's early targets, who had been found guilty of armed robbery.

Thus far, though, the majority we have discovered concerning Shawshank has been through the eyes of Andy Dufresne from The Shawshank Redemption, portrayed by the actor Tim Robbins in that 1994 film. Andy ends up in Shawshank following being wrongly convicted, and finds himself assaulted and abused by fellow inmates, and taken advantage of by the officials in power due to his expertise in finance. He requires him 28 years to tunnel his way out from Shawshank, before crawling "through sewage" to reclaim his liberty.

Shawshank's Role in Welcome to Derry

In relation to It: Welcome to Derry, viewers first learned of Shawshank's inclusion from an initial preview for the show, where a correctional transport appeared bearing the title displayed on its side. During the second episode, it is revealed who is probably destined for Shawshank.

Although we know he was not commit the child deaths in the first episode, the character Hank Grogan (played by Stephen Rider), father of Ronnie (Amanda Christine), gets taken into custody for those offenses. The preview for episode 3, "Now You See It," reveals an officer informing a jailed Hank, "Are you aware what they do to kiddie killers at that prison?"

The Implications for the Character and His Daughter

Considering that the real murderer in the town is an ancient power originating elsewhere preying on and killing kids, Hank's chances of proving his innocence appear slim. And even if he ends up to Shawshank and viewers do not see him inside, understanding what we do about that prison makes it clear that his time there would be far from pleasant.

Crucially, however, this situation could threaten Ronnie. He acts as her guardian. Horrible things are occurring around Derry which no one, young or old, understands and she just has her new group of friends to depend on. She will require her dad as the story progresses, but if the prison system has any say, she could be without help.

One thing is apparent: Hank doesn’t have three decades to tunnel his way out.

Welcome to Derry episodes 1 and 2 are currently available on HBO Max. Additional installments are released each week each Sunday.