You Should Watch One Legendary Stephen King Cinematic Before It: Welcome to Derry's Next Episode

HBO's It: Welcome to Derry contains numerous nods to Stephen King's vast collection of tales. Apart from the obvious ties to the original story, the series showcases an explicit link to The Shining through the appearance of the youthful future chef of the Overlook Hotel. Currently, as the narrative unfolds, Welcome to Derry is integrating another classic tale from King that deserves another look.

The Powerful Tale of The Shawshank Redemption

Although The Shawshank Redemption isn't typically classified as a horror film, particularly in contrast with a lot of the author's additional writing, it is a gripping tale of a wrongfully convicted man sentenced to live the rest of his life in a infamous penitentiary. It is this specific institution which is central here, since Shawshank State Prison holds considerable lore throughout King's stories — a tradition that continues within Welcome to Derry.

Among the tales that reference Shawshank include Dolores Claiborne, Needful Things, Apt Pupil, 11/22/63, and It. Via these stories, we learn regarding the awful conditions inside the state penitentiary and several of those imprisoned there, such as the partner of a of Pennywise's initial targets, who had been found guilty for robbery with a weapon.

So far, however, the most we have discovered about the prison has been via the eyes of the protagonist in The Shawshank Redemption, portrayed by the actor Tim Robbins in that 1994 film. Andy ends up at the prison following his wrongful conviction, then experiences assaulted and abused by fellow inmates, and exploited by those in authority figures due to his financial knowledge. It takes nearly three decades to tunnel an escape route from Shawshank, before making his way "through sewage" to reclaim his freedom.

The Prison's Appearance in It: Welcome to Derry

In relation to the series, viewers first learned about the prison's involvement via an early trailer for the series, where a correctional transport appeared with the name painted on the side. During the second episode, it is revealed which character is probably headed to the prison.

Though it is known he did not commit the murders of children in the first episode, the character Hank Grogan (Stephen Rider), dad to Ronnie (Amanda Christine), is arrested for the crimes. The preview for the next episode, "the upcoming installment," reveals a guard informing Hank in his cell, "Are you aware what they do to kiddie killers in Shawshank?"

The Implications for the Character and His Daughter

Given that the real killer in Derry is an ancient power from another world preying on and murdering children, Hank's chances of proving his innocence do not look good. And even if he ends up in the prison and the audience do not see him inside, knowing what we do regarding Shawshank makes it clear that his experience would not be enjoyable.

More importantly, though, this development could threaten his daughter. Hank is her protector. Horrible things are happening around Derry that nobody, child or adult, understands and Ronnie just has her recently formed circle of pals to depend on. She will require her dad in the coming episodes, however should Shawshank has any say, she may be out of luck.

One thing seems clear: Hank lacks three decades to tunnel to freedom.

Welcome to Derry the first two episodes are currently available on HBO Max. Additional installments are released each week each Sunday.