Make Time For This Classic Stephen King Cinematic Prior to It: Welcome to Derry's Next Episode
The series It: Welcome to Derry contains numerous connections to Stephen King's extensive universe of narratives. Apart from the clear ties to the original story, the show showcases a direct connection to The Shining via the appearance of a young Dick Hallorann. Currently, as the story unfolds, Welcome to Derry is weaving in another classic King story that deserves a revisit.
The Haunting Story of The Shawshank Redemption
While Shawshank Redemption may not be considered horror, especially in contrast with a lot of King's other work, it remains a gripping tale of a wrongfully convicted individual condemned to live his remaining years inside a infamous prison. It is that very penitentiary which is important in this context, since Shawshank State Prison holds considerable lore across King's fictional world — a tradition that continues in Welcome to Derry.
Some of the tales that reference Shawshank are Dolores Claiborne, Needful Things, Apt Pupil, 11/22/63, as well as It. Through these narratives, we learn regarding the terrible life inside the state penitentiary plus some of those imprisoned there, such as the boyfriend of one belonging to Pennywise's initial targets, who had been convicted of armed robbery.
Thus far, though, the most we've learned about the prison was through the perspective of Andy Dufresne from The Shawshank Redemption, played by the actor Tim Robbins in the 1994 film. Andy ends up in Shawshank following his wrongful conviction, and experiences beaten and abused by fellow inmates, and taken advantage of by those in authority figures for his expertise in finance. It takes nearly three decades to dig his way out from Shawshank, before crawling "through sewage" to take back his liberty.
Shawshank's Role in Welcome to Derry
In relation to It: Welcome to Derry, viewers initially discovered about the prison's inclusion from an early trailer for the series, in which a prison bus appeared bearing the title displayed on its side. In episode 2, we learn which character is probably headed to Shawshank.
Although it is known he did not responsible for the murders of children initially, the character Hank Grogan (played by Stephen Rider), father of Ronnie (Amanda Christine), gets taken into custody for those offenses. The preview for episode 3, "Now You See It," shows an officer telling a jailed Hank, "Are you aware what happens to child murderers in Shawshank?"
The Consequences for the Character and His Daughter
Considering that the real murderer in the town is a primordial entity originating elsewhere hunting and killing children, Hank's chances of proving his innocence do not look good. Even should he does go in the prison and viewers do not see him there, knowing what we do about that prison makes it clear that his experience would be far from pleasant.
More importantly, however, this situation could threaten his daughter. Hank is her guardian. Horrible things are happening around Derry that nobody, young or old, understands and Ronnie only has her new group of friends to rely on. She will require her father in the coming episodes, but if the prison system plays a role, she may be out of luck.
One thing seems clear: Hank doesn’t have 28 years to tunnel his way out.
Welcome to Derry episodes 1 and 2 are currently available via the streaming service. Additional installments are released each week on Sundays.
