Stephen King's "It" Is Getting A Prequel Series On HBO Max
Stephen King's It will now be getting a prequel series on HBO Max set in the 1960s titled, Welcome to Derry.
It director Andy Muschietti will return as an executive producer along with his sister, Barbara. Jason Fuchs will also return to write the script for the series. But whether or not Bill Skarsgärd will come back as the shapeshifting clown, Pennywise, has not been confirmed yet.
The series will take place during the 1960s, roughly two decades before the events of It: Chapter One. We'll most likely see the child-eating clown emerge from Its 27-year-long hibernation and how the people of Derry reacted to Pennywise's rampage at the time.
The show will also explore more of Its mysterious origins in the cursed town of Derry. Perhaps we'll see how this cosmic entity created the persona of Bob Gray/Pennywise the Dancing Clown, which was hinted at in It: Chapter Two. Maybe we'll even get to see that giant space Turtle he hates so much (those of you who read the book know what I mean).
Stephen King's It is filled with rich and frightening subplots that Muschietti's films have only scratched the surface of, and this series can finally give audiences the deep dive into Derry's history that they've waited to see onscreen.
Such history includes the Kitchener Ironworks explosion, the mob shooting of the Bradley Gang, and the burning of the Black Spot nightclub. Given that the latter took place in the '60s in Muschietti's films, we might see this hate-related tragedy unfold in the series' first episode, similar to how HBO's Watchmen began with the Black Wall Street Massacre.
There are also many gruesome murders that occurred in Derry, some not even committed by Pennywise, that weren't fully explored in the films.
An example of this is the death of Eddie Corcoran. In the novel, he and his little brother, Dorsey, suffered constant abuse from their stepfather, Richard Macklin, who killed Dorsey before Eddie was taken by It. Of course, the prequel will occur before all this, but perhaps subplots like these could serve as inspirations for the characters and events of the series.
