Make Time For One Classic Stephen King Cinematic Prior to the Series' Upcoming Installment
The series It: Welcome to Derry contains numerous references to Stephen King's extensive collection of tales. Beyond the clear links to the original story, the show showcases a direct connection to King's famous novel via the cameo of the youthful future chef of the Overlook Hotel. Now, as the story progresses, Welcome to Derry is integrating another beloved King story which merits another look.
The Haunting Tale of The Shawshank Redemption
While Shawshank Redemption may not be classified as a horror film, particularly compared to a lot of the author's additional work, it is a gripping tale about an wrongfully convicted man sentenced to live the rest of his life inside a notorious prison. And it's that very institution which is important here, as Shawshank State Prison possesses significant lore across King's fictional world — a pattern that continues in Welcome to Derry.
Some of the stories which mention Shawshank include Dolores Claiborne, Needful Things, Apt Pupil, 11/22/63, as well as It. Via these narratives, we learn about the awful conditions inside Shawshank State Prison and some of the inmates within, including the partner of one of Pennywise's initial targets, who had been convicted for robbery with a weapon.
So far, though, the most we've learned about the prison was through the perspective of the protagonist from Shawshank Redemption, portrayed by Tim Robbins in the 1994 movie. The character Andy ends up at the prison following being wrongly convicted, and experiences beaten and raped by other prisoners, while taken advantage of by those in officials in power due to his expertise in finance. He requires nearly three decades to dig an escape route of the prison, prior to crawling "through a river of shit" to take back his liberty.
The Prison's Appearance in Welcome to Derry
Regarding the series, audiences initially discovered about the prison's involvement from an initial preview for the series, where a correctional transport was seen with the name painted on the side. During the second episode, it is revealed which character is probably destined for Shawshank.
Though we know he was not commit the murders of children in the first episode, 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 informing Hank in his cell, "Do you know what they do to kiddie killers in Shawshank?"
The Implications for the Character and Ronnie
Given that the real murderer in Derry is a primordial entity originating elsewhere preying on and killing kids, Hank's prospects of proving his innocence do not look good. Even should he does go in the prison and viewers do not see him inside, knowing what we do regarding Shawshank indicates that his time there would be far from pleasant.
More importantly, though, this situation would endanger his daughter. He acts as her guardian. Terrible events are occurring around Derry that nobody, young or old, understands and Ronnie just has her new group circle of pals to rely on. She's going to need her dad as the story progresses, but if Shawshank has any say, she may be out of luck.
One thing seems clear: Hank doesn’t have 28 years to tunnel to freedom.
Welcome to Derry the first two episodes are streaming now on HBO Max. New episodes are released each week each Sunday.