You Should Watch One Classic Stephen King Movie Before It: Welcome to Derry's Next Episode
The series Welcome to Derry contains numerous connections to the author's wide-ranging collection of tales. Apart from the obvious ties to It, the series showcases a direct link to The Shining via the cameo of a young future chef of the Overlook Hotel. Now, as the story progresses, It: Welcome to Derry is integrating one more classic King story that deserves a revisit.
The Powerful Tale of The Shawshank Redemption
Although The Shawshank Redemption isn't typically classified as horror, particularly compared to much of the author's additional work, it remains a haunting tale about an innocently imprisoned individual sentenced to spend his remaining years in a notorious penitentiary. And it's this specific institution which is central here, as the Shawshank facility possesses significant lore across King's stories — a tradition which persists in It: Welcome to Derry.
Some of the stories that reference Shawshank are Dolores Claiborne, Needful Things, Apt Pupil, 11/22/63, and It. Through these narratives, we learn about the awful life at the state penitentiary plus several of those imprisoned there, including the partner of a of Pennywise's initial victims, who had been found guilty for robbery with a weapon.
So far, however, the most we've learned about the prison was through the eyes of the protagonist in Shawshank Redemption, portrayed by Tim Robbins in the 1994 movie. The character Andy winds up in Shawshank after being wrongly convicted, then finds himself beaten and raped by other prisoners, while taken advantage of by those in authority figures due to his expertise in finance. He requires him 28 years to dig an escape route from Shawshank, prior to crawling "through sewage" to reclaim his freedom.
Shawshank's Appearance in Welcome to Derry
In relation to It: Welcome to Derry, audiences first learned of Shawshank's inclusion from an initial preview for the series, where a correctional transport appeared with the name painted on the side. In episode 2, it is revealed which character is likely headed to Shawshank.
Though we know he was not responsible for the murders of children initially, the character Hank Grogan (Stephen Rider), father of Ronnie (Amanda Christine), is arrested for the crimes. The preview for episode 3, "the upcoming installment," shows a guard telling Hank in his cell, "Are you aware what they do to child murderers in Shawshank?"
The Consequences for the Character and His Daughter
Given that the real killer in Derry is an ancient power from another world hunting and killing kids, Hank's prospects of clearing his name do not look good. And even if he does go to Shawshank and the audience don't follow him inside, understanding what we do regarding Shawshank indicates that his experience would not be enjoyable.
Crucially, though, this situation could threaten Ronnie. Hank is her guardian. Horrible things are happening in the town that nobody, child or adult, comprehends and Ronnie just has her recently formed of friends to depend on. She's going to need her dad as the story progresses, but if the prison system plays a role, she could be out of luck.
One thing is apparent: Hank lacks 28 years to tunnel his way out.
Welcome to Derry episodes 1 and 2 are streaming now via the streaming service. Additional installments are released each week each Sunday.
