Don't Miss This Iconic Stephen King Cinematic Before the Series' Upcoming Installment
The series Welcome to Derry is packed with references to Stephen King's wide-ranging library of stories. Apart from the obvious ties to It, the show includes an explicit connection to King's famous novel via the appearance of a young Dick Hallorann. Currently, as the story unfolds, It: Welcome to Derry is weaving in one more classic King story which merits another look.
The Haunting Story of The Shawshank Redemption
While Shawshank Redemption isn't typically considered a horror film, especially in contrast with much of King's other writing, it is a gripping story about an wrongfully convicted individual condemned to live his remaining years inside a notorious penitentiary. And it's that very institution that becomes central in this context, since Shawshank State Prison holds significant lore throughout King's fictional world — a tradition that continues within It: Welcome to Derry.
Some of the stories which mention Shawshank are Dolores Claiborne, Needful Things, Apt Pupil, 11/22/63, as well as It. Via these narratives, we learn about the awful life inside the state penitentiary and several of those imprisoned within, including the partner of one belonging to Pennywise's initial victims, who had been convicted of armed robbery.
So far, though, the most we have discovered about the prison has been through the eyes of Andy Dufresne in Shawshank Redemption, portrayed by Tim Robbins in the 1994 movie. The character Andy ends up at the prison after being wrongly convicted, then finds himself beaten and raped by fellow inmates, while exploited by those in authority figures for his expertise in finance. He requires him 28 years to tunnel an escape route of the prison, prior to crawling "through sewage" to reclaim his liberty.
Shawshank's Role in It: Welcome to Derry
Regarding the series, viewers first learned about the prison's inclusion via an early trailer for the show, where a prison bus appeared bearing the title painted on the side. In episode 2, we learn which character is probably destined for the prison.
Though it is known he did not responsible for the child deaths initially, the character Hank Grogan (Stephen Rider), father of Ronnie (Amanda Christine), gets taken into custody for the crimes. The preview for episode 3, "the upcoming installment," reveals an officer telling Hank in his cell, "Do you know what they do to child murderers at that prison?"
The Consequences for the Character and His Daughter
Given that the actual killer in Derry is an ancient power originating elsewhere hunting and killing children, Hank's chances of clearing his name do not look good. Even should he ends up in the prison and the audience do not see him there, knowing what is known about that prison makes it clear that his time there would not be enjoyable.
More importantly, however, this situation could threaten his daughter. He acts as her guardian. Terrible events are happening around Derry that nobody, child or adult, comprehends and she only has her new group circle of pals to depend on. She will require her dad in the coming episodes, but if Shawshank plays a role, she may be out of luck.
One thing is apparent: Hank doesn’t have three decades to tunnel to freedom.
It: Welcome to Derry the first two episodes are currently available on HBO Max. New episodes are released each week on Sundays.
