Don't Miss This Iconic Stephen King Movie Before It: Welcome to Derry's Upcoming Installment
HBO's Welcome to Derry is filled with references to the author's extensive universe of narratives. Beyond the clear ties to the original story, the series showcases a direct connection to The Shining via the cameo of the youthful Dick Hallorann. Now, as the story unfolds, It: Welcome to Derry is weaving in one more classic King story that deserves a revisit.
The Powerful Story of The Shawshank Redemption
Although The Shawshank Redemption isn't typically considered horror, especially compared to a lot of the author's additional writing, it is a haunting tale of a innocently imprisoned man condemned to spend his remaining years in a notorious prison. And it's that very institution that becomes important in this context, since the Shawshank facility holds significant history throughout King's stories — a pattern which persists in It: Welcome to Derry.
Some of the tales that reference the prison are Dolores Claiborne, Needful Things, Apt Pupil, 11/22/63, as well as It. Via these narratives, we discover about the awful life inside the state penitentiary and several of those imprisoned within, including the partner of a of Pennywise's initial targets, who had been convicted for robbery with a weapon.
Thus far, though, the most we have discovered about the prison has been through the perspective of the protagonist in Shawshank Redemption, played by Tim Robbins in the 1994 film. The character Andy winds up at the prison following his wrongful conviction, then experiences assaulted and raped by other prisoners, while taken advantage of by those in officials in power due to his financial knowledge. He requires nearly three decades to dig an escape route from Shawshank, prior to crawling "through a river of shit" to reclaim his liberty.
Shawshank's Appearance in It: Welcome to Derry
In relation to the series, audiences first learned about the prison's involvement from an initial preview for the show, where a correctional transport appeared with the name painted on the side. In episode 2, it is revealed who is probably destined for the prison.
Though we know he did not responsible for the murders of children initially, the character Hank Grogan (Stephen Rider), father of Ronnie (Amanda Christine), gets taken into custody for the crimes. The preview for episode 3, "Now You See It," shows an officer informing Hank in his cell, "Do you know what they do to kiddie killers in Shawshank?"
The Implications for Hank and Ronnie
Considering that the actual murderer in Derry is an ancient power from another world hunting and murdering children, Hank's chances of proving his innocence do not look good. Even should he does go to Shawshank and the audience don't follow him there, knowing what we do about that prison makes it clear that his time there would not be enjoyable.
More importantly, though, this development could threaten his daughter. He acts as her protector. Terrible events are occurring in the town which no one, young or old, comprehends and she only has her recently formed of friends to rely on. She will require her father as the story progresses, however should Shawshank plays a role, she may be without help.
A single fact is apparent: Hank lacks 28 years to tunnel to freedom.
It: Welcome to Derry episodes 1 and 2 are streaming now on HBO Max. New episodes air weekly each Sunday.
