How IT: Welcome to Derry Connects to the Stephen King Multiverse

Warning: This nonfiction contains spoilers for IT: Welcome to Derry Episodes 1-4!

Fans of Stephen King’s novels volition cognize that these tales of small-town panic and tortured souls aren’t simply standalone stories. They’re each portion of a larger storytelling multiverse, and crossovers tin and bash often happen. That’s surely existent for IT: Welcome to Derry – not lone is this bid a prequel to the It movies, it besides includes nods to different King characters and storylines.

With the archetypal 2 episodes having premiered connected HBO Max, we figured present is simply a large clip to interruption down the cardinal Stephen King easter eggs successful Welcome to Derry and research however the bid is taking vantage of the King multiverse. Keep checking back, arsenic we’ll update this portion arsenic much episodes air.

What Is Bill Skarsgård’s Villain Pennywise?

With Welcome to Derry taking spot 27 years earlier the events of 2017’s It, it should travel arsenic nary astonishment that determination aren’t galore returning actors for this prequel. In fact, the lone confirmed seasoned of the bid is Bill Skarsgård, who is erstwhile again playing the demonic, shapeshifting villain, It (whose favourite signifier is Pennywise the Dancing Clown). We don’t really spot Skarsgård successful the archetypal 4 episodes, but the character’s nefarious power is surely felt. If there’s immoderate takeaway from the pilot, it’s that Derry was a cursed spot agelong earlier the Losers Club clashed with Pennywise for the archetypal time.

With Pennywise being specified an important portion of the series, it’s worthy taking a measurement backmost to research what precisely this quality is and however helium fits into King’s monster multiverse. The It caller establishes that It is an alien entity created successful the void extracurricular the universe. It yet crashed connected Earth via an asteroid millions of years ago, astatine which constituent it took up residence successful the country that would go Derry, Maine. We spot this root communicative play retired during Episode 4's flashback sequence.

Ever since radical began to settee successful Derry, It has shown a signifier of emerging for a twelvemonth oregon 2 to question victims and feast connected their fear; it is fundamentally a psychic vampire. After gorging itself, It past goes into hibernation for 27 years earlier reawakening and starting the rhythm each implicit again. It tends to people children due to the fact that their fears are much primal and easier to exploit.

It/Pennywise is easy 1 of the astir terrifying creatures successful King’s monolithic library, but it’s not needfully unique. King’s Dark Tower novels found that the multiverse was erstwhile bathed successful a mystical vigor root called the Prim. When the Prim receded similar an water tide, it near down a large galore supernatural creatures embedded successful the worlds of creation; Pennywise is conscionable 1 of galore of those monsters. One of the Dark Tower books adjacent introduces a relative of sorts – a akin psychic vampire who feeds connected laughter alternatively than fear.

The Hanlon Family

Welcome to Derry whitethorn not diagnostic galore returning characters, but it does diagnostic 1 household that should beryllium precise acquainted to fans of the films. The archetypal occurrence introduces Jovan Adepo’s Leroy Hanlon; Leroy is the gramps of Mike Hanlon, who was played successful the films arsenic a kid by Chosen Jacobs and arsenic an big by Isaiah Mustafa.

Welcome to Derry shows america however the Hanlon household archetypal came to settee successful Derry successful 1962. Leroy is simply a decorated and well-respected Air Force large who is recruited by General Shaw (James Remar) to enactment connected a top-secret program. Little by little, Leroy is becoming exposed to the acheronian lurking beneath the idyllic facade of Derry and the racism inactive rampant successful the ranks of the military. In Episode 2, Leroy learns that Shaw is moving to harness a limb that tin instill implicit fearfulness successful America's enemies. Apparently, Shaw wants to weaponize It.

Episode 2 introduces Taylour Paige arsenic Leroy’s wife, Charlotte, and Blake Cameron James arsenic his son, Will, neither of whom look peculiarly enamored with their caller home. But nevertheless atrocious things get this season, it’s not going to thrust this household retired of Derry.

The Shining’s Dick Hallorann

Welcome to Derry is going to gully connected much than conscionable the It movies and novel; that overmuch has been evident ever since an earlier trailer included a changeable of a Shawshank Prison bus. But successful what is easy the astir important King easter ovum truthful far, the series’ formed includes a large quality from The Shining: Dick Hallorann (Chris Chalk).

Fans of The Shining and its sequel, Doctor Sleep, volition retrieve that Dick is the caput cook astatine the Overlook Hotel successful Colorado. Because helium has the psychic aptitude known arsenic “the shine,” Dick is much delicate than astir to the galore ghosts haunting the Overlook’s halls. Dick becomes rightfully acrophobic erstwhile helium senses that young Danny Torrance, the lad of wintertime caretaker Jack Torrance, shines particularly brightly, and is truthful a ripe people for those ghosts. Eventually, Dick is forced to brave the harsh Colorado wintertime successful bid to rescue Danny and his parent from the hotel’s wrath.

Welcome to Derry takes spot astir 2 decades earlier The Shining; astatine this stage, Dick is serving connected the aforesaid Derry aerial unit basal arsenic Leroy Hanlon. We lone drawback a little glimpse of Dick successful Episode 1, but helium seems intently funny successful Leroy, arsenic if helium tin consciousness thing is supernaturally amiss with the major.

Episode 2 provides much discourse for Dick's beingness successful Derry and his involvement successful Leroy. Dick is utilizing his psychic abilities to assistance the Air Force excavation up and harness the slumbering It. Dick seems to consciousness that Leroy is peculiar successful his ain way. A slug to his encephalon has robbed Leroy of the quality to consciousness fear, which whitethorn marque him the lone idiosyncratic susceptible of lasting up to It. And by Episode 4, Leroy is starting to travel to presumption with the information that Dick genuinely does person supernatural abilities.

We afloat expect Dick to play a cardinal relation successful battling It successful this series. Just arsenic astatine the Overlook, Dick’s powers volition marque him much alert than astir adults of the information lurking underneath the town. It whitethorn adjacent people Dick specifically, hoping to gully other sustenance from his psychic abilities, overmuch similar the vampires successful Doctor Sleep.

The Shining's Calumet Baking Powder

Episode 2 incldues different amusive The Shining Easter egg, arsenic we spot a stack of Calumet Baking Powder cans successful the market store, each displaying that iconic logo of an Indian chief. These cans were besides seen successful Stanley Kubrick's movie adaptation of The Shining, portion of the Overlook Hotel's extended larder.

The nonstop value of the cans and the Indian logo has been the root of overmuch statement implicit the years, with immoderate arguing (like successful the documentary Room 237) that Kubrick was trying to see subtle commentary astir American imperialism and the genocide of Native Americans. The Indian main representation whitethorn besides talk to the past past of the supernatural terrors successful this world. Again, It has been successful Derry for a precise agelong time.

Juniper Hill Asylum

Episode 2 besides introduces different iconic King landmark successful Juniper Hill Asylum. We larn that Susie (Matilda Legault) was antecedently committed determination aft the decease of her father, and she's forced to instrumentality astatine the extremity of the occurrence aft suffering done different of It's terrifying hallucinations. That means we'll surely spot wrong its acheronian halls arsenic the play unfolds.

Juniper Hill appears successful the archetypal IT caller arsenic good arsenic galore different King works, from Insomnia to Needful Things to The Dark Half. It's a spot each spot arsenic twisted arsenic you'd expect from a intelligence instauration successful Stephen King's multiverse.

Shawshank State Prison

Alongside Juniper Hill, the bid is besides introducing different precise recognizable installation successful the signifier of Shawshank State Prison. The wrongfully imprisoned Hank Grogan (Stephen Rider) looks doomed to beryllium imprisoned there, adjacent arsenic Charlotte fights to wide his name.

Shawshank was astir famously featured successful King's 1982 novella "Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption," which was aboriginal adapted into the 1994 movie The Shawshank Redemption. Both versions of the communicative travel the pliught of Andy Dufresne, a antheral imprisoned for decades astatine the hellish situation aft being convicted of murdering his wife. Shashank was besides heavy featured successful Castle Rock, different bid notable for bringing unneurotic pieces of the King multiverse.

The Importance of the Turtle

Welcome to Derry’s archetypal occurrence includes different important, albeit much subtle, easter ovum successful the signifier of a charm connected Susie’s bracelet – a turtle, a carnal with heavy value successful King lore. We spot different turtle notation successful Episode 4, erstwhile the Indian people buries 1 of the pieces of the meteorite wrong a turtle shell.

Getting backmost to It’s cosmic origins, this demon was created astatine the aforesaid clip arsenic a benevolent turtle entity; the Turtle is It’s polar other and a motion of spot to the members of the Losers Club. The Turtle is besides 1 of the 12 animals featured successful the Dark Tower books who defender “The Beams,” invisible vigor forces that pb straight to the titular operation astatine the halfway of existence.

We’d expect to spot aggregate turtle references successful this series, each meant to service arsenic reminders that determination are different forces astatine enactment successful Derry beyond It/Pennywise…and not each of them are truthful sinister.

The Second Hand Rose

Episode 2 establishes a cardinal throwback to 2019's IT: Chapter Two with the country astatine the Second Hand Rose thrift shop. In the movie, that store is tally by Stephen King's quality (that aforesaid quality cameos arsenic a younger antheral here), and it's wherever Bill Denbrough buys his beloved Schwinn bicycle. Back successful 1962, it's wherever Leroy purchases a scope for his lad Will.

Like the turtle, the roseate is an representation with peculiar value successful King's work, and it besides ties backmost to the Dark Tower books and their cardinal protagonist, Roland Deschain. The roseate is simply a awesome of goodness and purity, though we decidedly get a somewhat creepy vibe from the store successful this series. If anything, we can't assistance but beryllium reminded of Needful Things and its infamous store of horrors.

On the different hand, the shop's existent owner, Kimberly Norris Guerrero's Rose, has go a large absorption of the series, and she seems to beryllium 1 of the fewer genuinely bully radical successful Derry. We'll spot if Rose survives the full season.

For much connected IT: Welcome to Derry, cheque retired our reappraisal of the bid premiere and spot manager Andy Muschietti interruption down the shocking ending to Episode 1.

Note: This nonfiction was primitively published connected 10/27/2025 and updated connected 11/17/2025 with the latest accusation astir IT: Welcome to Derry.

Jesse is simply a mild-mannered unit writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intelligence thicket by following @jschedeen connected BlueSky.