IT: Welcome to Derry transports audiences back to 1962, exploring a previous cycle of the titular creature’s reign of terror. The prequel series is set to investigate the dark history of the cursed Maine town, building a narrative that will eventually culminate in the infamous Black Spot incident, a horrific event of racial violence exacerbated by Pennywise’s influence. Welcome to Derry‘s period setting also provides the opportunity for expanding the lore established in the recent films by connecting to the wider Stephen King universe. The series wastes no time in this endeavor, strategically placing numerous Easter eggs in plain sight for dedicated fans to discover, hinting at the cosmic horror that has always been part of Derry.
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The decision to set the story 27 years before the events of the first IT film places the narrative squarely in the era when the parents of the future Losers’ Club were themselves children and teenagers, living through their own cycle of fear. IT: Welcome to Derry directly confronts this timeline by methodically establishing the family trees that connect its new characters to the iconic heroes audiences already know. This approach transforms the series into a study of generational trauma, exploring how the nightmarish events of the 1960s directly shape the families and sow the seeds of the dysfunction and sorrow that will later haunt the Losers’ Club. Warning: Spoilers below for IT: Welcome to Derry.
How Will Hanlon Connects to Mike
The premiere episode of IT: Welcome to Derry introduces Major Leroy Hanlon (Jovan Adepo), a decorated Air Force veteran who moves his family to the cursed town for a top-secret assignment. In the second episode, his 12-year-old son, Will (Blake Cameron James), arrives and immediately faces the challenge of being a new kid in a town simmering with secrets. The Hanlon surname is an immediate link to the future, as Will Hanlon is the father of Mike Hanlon, the eventual historian of the Losers’ Club and the only member to remain in Derry as an adult.
This connection retroactively enriches a key sequence from IT. In the film, an older Leroy Hanlon appears as Mike’s grandfather, a stern farmer who teaches his grandson the harsh realities of life and death by forcing him to kill sheep. The prequel series is positioned to bridge the gap between these two versions of Leroy, unraveling the story of how a disciplined and honorable military man is broken by a fateful encounter with Pennywise, ultimately trading his uniform for a secluded life on a farm.
The Uris Family’s Generational Trauma
One of the most shocking moments in the first episode of IT: Welcome to Derry is the brutal massacre at the local movie theater, which claims the lives of several children that the audience was led to believe would form a new Losers’ Club. Among the victims is Teddy, a young boy of Jewish descent whose father is the town’s rabbi (Dmitry Chepovetsky). The second episode confirms his full name is Teddy Uris, explicitly linking his family to Stanley Uris, the fearful member of the future Losers’ Club.
A dinner scene in the premiere provides the final piece of this familial puzzle, showing Teddy with his parents and his older brother, a character credited as Don Uris (Finley Burke). In Stephen King’s novel, Donald Uris is the name of Stanley’s father. This reveal establishes that 27 years before Stanley Uris confronts his deepest fears alongside the Losers’ Club, his own uncle was murdered by Pennywise. This act of violence deep within his family history adds a layer of inherited trauma to Stanley’s character.
The Origin of the Bowers Family’s Violence
The second episode of the series sees Derry’s Chief of Police facing pressure to find a culprit for the theater massacre. The town’s suspicion quickly falls on Hank Grogan (Stephen Rider), a Black man who works at the theater, making him the most convenient suspect in the racially charged environment of 1962 Derry. While the chief’s name is not revealed on screen, series co-creator Andy Muschietti provided the answer in a 2023 behind-the-scenes photograph published during filming. The picture shows the office door of “Clint Bowers, Chief of Police.”
In the IT saga, Henry Bowers is the sadistic bully who torments the Losers’ Club, and his character is largely shaped by his equally abusive father, ‘Butch’ Bowers, who is a police officer. The introduction of Clint Bowers strongly implies that he is Henry’s grandfather, establishing a direct lineage of authority and violence within the Derry police force. This connection suggests that Butch’s brutal nature was a learned behavior, passed down from his own father. It paints a chilling portrait of a family whose legacy of violence is as deeply embedded in Derry’s history as Pennywise itself.
A Precursor to Beverly’s Nightmare
A more subtle but equally chilling connection is made in the first episode of IT: Welcome to Derry. In a scene set within the girls’ bathroom at the local school, the name “Alvin Marsh” can be seen scrawled inside a heart on a stall door. This is a direct reference to the abusive father of Beverly Marsh, the lone female member of the Losers’ Club. The graffiti implies that in 1962, Alvin is still a student himself, perhaps even the object of a classmate’s affection. This small detail serves as a dark omen, foreshadowing Beverly’s grim childhood and her desperate desire to escape both her home and the town of Derry.
New episodes of IT: Welcome to Derry premiere on HBO every Sunday.
Which Losers’ Club family connection are you still hoping IT: Welcome to Derry to explore? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
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image courtesy of 20th Century Studios
