Don't Miss This Legendary Stephen King Cinematic Prior to the Series' Upcoming Installment

HBO's Welcome to Derry is packed with references to the author's vast library of stories. Apart from the obvious links to It, the show also features a direct link to King's famous novel through the appearance of the youthful future chef of the Overlook Hotel. Now, as the narrative unfolds, It: Welcome to Derry is integrating one more beloved tale from King that deserves another look.

The Powerful Story of The Shawshank Redemption

While The Shawshank Redemption may not be classified as a horror film, particularly in contrast with much of the author's additional writing, it remains a gripping tale of a innocently imprisoned individual sentenced to spend the rest of his life inside a notorious penitentiary. And it's that very institution that becomes central here, as Shawshank State Prison holds considerable lore throughout King's stories — a pattern that continues within It: Welcome to Derry.

Among the tales which mention the prison include Dolores Claiborne, Needful Things, Apt Pupil, 11/22/63, as well as It. Via these stories, we discover about the terrible conditions inside the state penitentiary plus some of the inmates within, including the partner of a belonging to Pennywise's early victims, who had been convicted of armed robbery.

Thus far, however, the most we've learned about the prison has been through the perspective of Andy Dufresne from The Shawshank Redemption, played by Tim Robbins in the 1994 movie. Andy ends up at the prison after his wrongful conviction, and finds himself assaulted and abused by fellow inmates, while exploited by the authority figures due to his expertise in finance. It takes nearly three decades to dig his way out of the prison, prior to crawling "through sewage" to reclaim his freedom.

The Prison's Role in It: Welcome to Derry

In relation to It: Welcome to Derry, audiences first learned about the prison's inclusion via an early trailer for the series, where a prison bus was seen with the name painted on the side. During the second episode, we learn who is likely destined for Shawshank.

Though we know he was not responsible for the murders of children initially, the character Hank Grogan (Stephen Rider), dad to Ronnie (Amanda Christine), gets taken into custody for those offenses. The preview for the next episode, "the upcoming installment," shows an officer telling a jailed Hank, "Are you aware what happens to child murderers in Shawshank?"

The Implications for Hank and His Daughter

Given that the actual killer in the town is a primordial entity from another world hunting and killing kids, Hank's prospects of proving his innocence appear slim. And even if he ends up in the prison and the audience do not see him inside, knowing what we do about that prison indicates that his experience would not be enjoyable.

Crucially, however, this situation could threaten his daughter. He acts as her guardian. Terrible events are happening in the town that nobody, child or adult, understands and Ronnie just has her new group of friends 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 three decades to dig his way out.

Welcome to Derry the first two episodes are currently available on HBO Max. New episodes are released each week each Sunday.