Don't Miss One Classic Stephen King Cinematic Prior to It: Welcome to Derry's Next Episode
The series Welcome to Derry is packed with references to Stephen King's wide-ranging collection of tales. Apart from the obvious links to It, the series also features a direct link to King's famous novel via the appearance of a young Dick Hallorann. Now, as the story unfolds, Welcome to Derry is integrating one more beloved tale from King which merits another look.
The Powerful Tale of The Shawshank Redemption
Although The Shawshank Redemption may not be classified as a horror film, especially compared to much of King's other work, it remains a gripping story about an innocently imprisoned individual sentenced to live the rest of his life in a notorious prison. And it's this specific institution that becomes central in this context, as the Shawshank facility possesses significant history across King's fictional world — a pattern which persists within Welcome to Derry.
Among the tales which mention the prison include Dolores Claiborne, Needful Things, Apt Pupil, 11/22/63, and It. Via these narratives, we discover regarding the terrible life at the state penitentiary plus some of those imprisoned there, including the partner of a belonging to Pennywise's early targets, who had been found guilty for robbery with a weapon.
Thus far, however, the majority we have discovered concerning Shawshank has been through the perspective of the protagonist from Shawshank Redemption, played by Tim Robbins in the 1994 film. The character Andy winds up in Shawshank following his wrongful conviction, and finds himself assaulted and abused by other prisoners, while exploited by the officials in power for his expertise in finance. He requires him 28 years to dig an escape route of the prison, before crawling "through sewage" to take back his freedom.
The Prison's Role in It: Welcome to Derry
Regarding the series, audiences initially discovered of Shawshank's involvement from an early trailer for the show, in which a prison bus appeared with the name displayed on its side. In episode 2, it is revealed which character is probably headed to Shawshank.
Though it is known he was not commit the murders of children initially, Hank Grogan (Stephen Rider), father of Ronnie (Amanda Christine), is arrested for the crimes. A teaser for the next episode, "the upcoming installment," reveals an officer telling Hank in his cell, "Do you know what they do to child murderers in Shawshank?"
The Implications for Hank and His Daughter
Considering that the actual killer in Derry is an ancient power from another world preying on and murdering children, Hank's prospects of clearing his name appear slim. And even if he does go in the prison and viewers don't follow him there, knowing what is known regarding Shawshank makes it clear that his time there would not be enjoyable.
Crucially, however, this situation would endanger Ronnie. He acts as her guardian. Horrible things are happening around Derry which no one, young or old, understands and Ronnie just has her recently formed of friends to depend on. She's going to need her father in the coming episodes, but if Shawshank has any say, she may be out of luck.
A single fact is apparent: Hank lacks three decades to dig his way out.
Welcome to Derry the first two episodes are streaming now on HBO Max. Additional installments are released each week each Sunday.
