Don't Miss This Classic Stephen King Movie Before the Series' Next Episode
The series It: Welcome to Derry is filled with connections to the author's extensive library of stories. Beyond the clear links to the original story, the series also features an explicit connection to King's famous novel through the appearance of the youthful Dick Hallorann. Currently, as the story progresses, Welcome to Derry is integrating another beloved tale from King that deserves another look.
The Haunting Tale of The Shawshank Redemption
Although Shawshank Redemption isn't typically considered horror, particularly compared to a lot of the author's additional work, it is a haunting tale about an wrongfully convicted individual sentenced to spend the rest of his life in a notorious penitentiary. It is this specific penitentiary which is central here, since Shawshank State Prison possesses considerable history across King's stories — a pattern that continues in Welcome to Derry.
Among the tales which mention Shawshank are Dolores Claiborne, Needful Things, Apt Pupil, 11/22/63, and It. Through these stories, we discover regarding the terrible life at the state penitentiary and some of those imprisoned there, such as the boyfriend of a belonging to Pennywise's early victims, who had been found guilty for robbery with a weapon.
So far, however, the most we've learned concerning Shawshank has been via the eyes of Andy Dufresne in The Shawshank Redemption, played by the actor Tim Robbins in that 1994 film. Andy ends up in Shawshank after his wrongful conviction, and finds himself assaulted and raped by other prisoners, and taken advantage of by the officials in power for his expertise in finance. It takes him 28 years to tunnel his way out from Shawshank, prior to crawling "through sewage" to take back his freedom.
The Prison's Role in It: Welcome to Derry
In relation to the series, audiences initially discovered about the prison's inclusion via an early trailer for the series, in which a correctional transport was seen with the name painted on the side. During the second episode, we learn which character is probably headed to Shawshank.
Though it is known he was not responsible for the murders of children in the first episode, Hank Grogan (Stephen Rider), father of Ronnie (Amanda Christine), gets taken into custody for those offenses. A teaser for episode 3, "Now You See It," reveals an officer telling a jailed Hank, "Do you know what happens to kiddie killers in Shawshank?"
The Consequences for the Character and Ronnie
Given that the real killer in Derry is a primordial entity from another world hunting and murdering children, Hank's prospects of proving his innocence appear slim. And even if he ends up in the prison and viewers don't follow him inside, knowing what we do about that prison makes it clear that his experience would be far from pleasant.
Crucially, however, this development could threaten Ronnie. He acts as her guardian. Terrible events are occurring around Derry that nobody, young or old, understands and Ronnie only has her recently formed of friends to rely on. She's going to need her father as the story progresses, however should Shawshank plays a role, she may 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 streaming now on HBO Max. Additional installments are released each week on Sundays.