Don't Miss One Iconic Stephen King Movie Before the Series' Next Episode
HBO's Welcome to Derry is filled with references to Stephen King's wide-ranging collection of tales. Apart from the clear ties to It, the series includes an explicit connection to King's famous novel via the appearance of the youthful Dick Hallorann. Now, as the narrative unfolds, It: Welcome to Derry is weaving in another beloved tale from King that deserves another look.
The Haunting Story of The Shawshank Redemption
Although The Shawshank Redemption isn't typically classified as horror, especially compared to much of King's other writing, it is a gripping tale about an innocently imprisoned individual sentenced to spend his remaining years in a notorious prison. And it's that very penitentiary that becomes important in this context, since Shawshank State Prison holds considerable lore across King's stories — a tradition that continues in It: Welcome to Derry.
Among the stories that reference Shawshank are Dolores Claiborne, Needful Things, Apt Pupil, 11/22/63, as well as It. Via these narratives, we discover regarding the terrible life at the state penitentiary plus some of those imprisoned within, such as the boyfriend of one of Pennywise's initial victims, who had been found guilty for robbery with a weapon.
Thus far, though, the most we have discovered concerning Shawshank has been through the eyes of Andy Dufresne from Shawshank Redemption, portrayed by the actor Tim Robbins in that 1994 film. The character Andy ends up at the prison following being wrongly convicted, then experiences assaulted and abused by fellow inmates, and exploited by the officials in power for his expertise in finance. It takes him 28 years to dig an escape route of the prison, prior to crawling "through sewage" to take back his freedom.
Shawshank's Role in Welcome to Derry
Regarding It: Welcome to Derry, audiences initially discovered of Shawshank's inclusion from an early trailer for the series, in which a correctional transport appeared with the name painted on the side. In episode 2, it is revealed who is probably headed to the prison.
Though it is known he was not commit the murders of children initially, Hank Grogan (Stephen Rider), dad to Ronnie (Amanda Christine), is arrested for the crimes. The preview for episode 3, "the upcoming installment," shows a guard telling a jailed Hank, "Do you know what they do to child murderers in Shawshank?"
The Implications for Hank and His Daughter
Considering that the real killer 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 don't follow him inside, understanding what is known about that prison makes it clear that his time there would not be enjoyable.
Crucially, though, this development would endanger Ronnie. He acts as her protector. Terrible events are occurring in the town that nobody, child or adult, understands and she just has her new group of friends to rely on. She will require her dad in the coming episodes, however should the prison system plays a role, she could be out of luck.
One thing is apparent: Hank doesn’t have 28 years to dig to freedom.
Welcome to Derry the first two episodes are currently available on HBO Max. New episodes air weekly each Sunday.