Make Time For This Iconic Stephen King Film Prior to the Series' Next Episode
HBO's It: Welcome to Derry contains numerous references to the author's wide-ranging universe of narratives. Apart from the obvious ties to the original story, the series includes a direct link to The Shining through the appearance of the youthful Dick Hallorann. Now, as the story progresses, It: Welcome to Derry is integrating one more beloved tale from King that deserves another look.
The Haunting Tale of The Shawshank Redemption
Although Shawshank Redemption isn't typically classified as horror, especially compared to a lot of King's other work, it is a gripping tale of a wrongfully convicted man condemned to live his remaining years in a infamous penitentiary. And it's this specific institution which is important in this context, since Shawshank State Prison possesses significant lore across King's stories — a pattern that continues in It: Welcome to Derry.
Some of the tales which mention the prison include Dolores Claiborne, Needful Things, Apt Pupil, 11/22/63, and It. Via these narratives, we discover about the awful life at the state penitentiary plus several of the inmates within, including the partner of a of Pennywise's early targets, who had been found guilty for robbery with a weapon.
So far, however, the most we've learned about the prison has been through the eyes of Andy Dufresne from Shawshank Redemption, portrayed by Tim Robbins in the 1994 movie. The character Andy winds up in Shawshank after being wrongly convicted, then finds himself assaulted and raped by other prisoners, and taken advantage of by the officials in power for his expertise in finance. He requires nearly three decades to dig an escape route of the prison, prior to crawling "through sewage" to reclaim his freedom.
Shawshank's Role in It: Welcome to Derry
Regarding It: Welcome to Derry, viewers first learned about the prison's inclusion via an initial preview for the series, where a correctional transport appeared with the name painted on the side. During the second episode, we learn which character is likely headed to Shawshank.
Although we know he did not commit the child deaths in the first episode, the character Hank Grogan (played by Stephen Rider), father of Ronnie (Amanda Christine), gets taken into custody for the crimes. A teaser for episode 3, "the upcoming installment," reveals a guard informing Hank in his cell, "Do you know what they do to kiddie killers at that prison?"
The Consequences for the Character and Ronnie
Considering that the actual killer in Derry is an ancient power from another world hunting and murdering kids, Hank's chances of clearing his name appear slim. And even if he does go in the prison and viewers don't follow him there, understanding what we do regarding Shawshank indicates that his experience would not be pleasant.
More importantly, though, this development could threaten his daughter. Hank is her guardian. Horrible things are happening in the town that nobody, young or old, understands and she just has her recently formed circle of pals to depend on. She's going to need her father in the coming episodes, however should Shawshank plays a role, she may be out of luck.
A single fact seems clear: Hank doesn’t have 28 years to dig to freedom.
It: Welcome to Derry the first two episodes are currently available on HBO Max. Additional installments air weekly on Sundays.
