Make Time For One Legendary Stephen King Film Prior to It: Welcome to Derry's Upcoming Installment
The series Welcome to Derry contains numerous references to Stephen King's wide-ranging universe of narratives. Beyond the obvious links to It, the series also features a direct connection to King's famous novel via the appearance of a young Dick Hallorann. Currently, as the story unfolds, Welcome to Derry is weaving in one more classic tale from King which merits a revisit.
The Powerful Tale of The Shawshank Redemption
While Shawshank Redemption isn't typically classified as horror, particularly compared to a lot of King's other writing, it remains a gripping tale about an innocently imprisoned individual condemned to live the rest of his life in a notorious prison. And it's that very institution that becomes important here, since Shawshank State Prison possesses considerable lore across King's stories — a pattern that continues within It: Welcome to Derry.
Among the tales that reference the prison include Dolores Claiborne, Needful Things, Apt Pupil, 11/22/63, and It. Through these narratives, we learn about the awful life at Shawshank State Prison and some of the inmates within, such as the partner of a belonging to Pennywise's initial victims, who had been convicted for robbery with a weapon.
Thus far, though, the most we have discovered concerning Shawshank was through the eyes of Andy Dufresne in The Shawshank Redemption, played by Tim Robbins in the 1994 film. Andy ends up at the prison after being wrongly convicted, then finds himself beaten and abused by other prisoners, and taken advantage of by the officials in power due to his expertise in finance. He requires him 28 years to tunnel an escape route of the prison, prior to making his way "through a river of shit" to reclaim his freedom.
Shawshank's Appearance in It: Welcome to Derry
Regarding It: Welcome to Derry, viewers initially discovered about the prison's inclusion from an initial preview for the series, where a prison bus was seen bearing the title painted on the side. In episode 2, it is revealed which character is probably headed to Shawshank.
Though it is known he did not responsible for the murders of children in the first episode, the character Hank Grogan (played by Stephen Rider), father of Ronnie (Amanda Christine), is arrested for the crimes. A teaser for the next episode, "Now You See It," shows a guard informing a jailed Hank, "Are you aware what happens to child murderers in Shawshank?"
The Consequences for Hank and His Daughter
Considering that the actual murderer in Derry is a primordial entity originating elsewhere hunting and murdering kids, Hank's chances of clearing his name do not look good. Even should he does go to Shawshank and viewers do not see him there, knowing what is known regarding Shawshank makes it clear that his experience would be far from enjoyable.
More importantly, though, this development would endanger Ronnie. Hank is her guardian. Horrible things are occurring in the town that nobody, child or adult, comprehends and she just has her new group circle of pals to rely on. She's going to need her father in the coming episodes, however should Shawshank has any say, she could be without help.
A single fact seems clear: Hank lacks 28 years to tunnel to freedom.
Welcome to Derry the first two episodes are currently available via the streaming service. New episodes air weekly each Sunday.
