When does “Welcome to Derry” come out? What to know about the “It” prequel series — and Pennywise’s return

Key Points

• Based on Stephen King’s 1986 novel It, Welcome to Derry is a prequel exploring the horrors that preceded 2017’s It and 2019’s It Chapter Two.

• Jovan Adepo and Taylour Paige will star as the grandparents of Losers’ Club member Mike Hanlon.

• The nine-episode series debuts in October on HBO Max.

The terrors of Stephen King’s It are not only shape-shifting, but generational.

As we learn in the many, many pages of King’s masterpiece, a creature that often appears as Pennywise the Dancing Clown has long plagued the small Maine town of Derry. The entity operates in cycles, awakening for roughly a year of terror after 27 years of hibernation. That generational element will be key to HBO Max’s Welcome to Derry, an upcoming horror series that serves as a prequel to 2017’s It and 2019’s It Chapter Two, both of which were directed by Andy Muschietti.

It: Welcome to Derry comes from Muschietti and his sister/producing partner Barbara Muschietti, who developed the series with Jason Fuchs, a co-producer on It Chapter Two. Fuchs serves as co-showrunner alongside Brad Caleb Kane, who previously penned episodes of Fringe (2008–2009), Black Sails (2014–2017), and Tokyo Vice (2022).

“This is a book we love a lot, and we felt that there was still a lot of story to be covered,” the Muschiettis previously told Entertainment Weekly over email. “It’s so rich with characters and events, we thought we would do justice to the book and the fans by going back into this world.”

After a splashy panel at San Diego Comic-Con and the release of a new trailer, you might have questions. What is Welcome to Derry about? When does it take place? Is Bill Skarsgård returning as that damned clown?

Pop on a bright red clown nose, scoop up some cotton candy, and read on for everything to know about HBO Max’s Welcome to Derry.

What is Welcome to Derry about?

Welcome to Derry covers ground from King’s 1100-page novel that went more or less unexplored in the film adaptations. King includes several interludes in the book that, from the perspective of local librarian (and Losers’ Club member) Mike Hanlon, dig into the violent history of Derry — and what role the creature known as It may have played in them.

“We are telling the stories of the interludes, writings by Mike Hanlon based on his investigation that includes interviews he conducts with the older people in the town,” the Muschiettis explained to EW. “In Welcome to Derry, we touch on the usual themes that were talked about in the movie — friendship, loss, the power of unified belief — but this story focuses also on the use of fear as a weapon, which is one of the things that is also relevant to our times.”

Season 1 of Welcome to Derry centers on the book’s most harrowing interlude, about a nightclub called the Black Spot that catered to Black revelers. One night, the Black Spot was burned down by a white supremacist outfit, killing many of those trapped inside.

It takes place in 1962, 27 years before the events of 2017’s It. (For clarity’s sake: the Black Spot interlude is set in the 1930s in King’s book, but the series adheres to the timeline established in Muschietti’s films.) But the Muschiettis told EW that there will be “a few jumps to the past.”

“Twenty-seven years is the dormant period of Pennywise. It’s a different part of American history with a new set of fears for children, as well as adults having in mind the cost of the Cold War,” they said. “Every 27 years when It appears, It’s cycle is marked by two catastrophic events, one at the beginning and one in the end. We are using the Black Spot as an event in which many stories are built around.”

Is there a Welcome to Derry trailer?

There are two trailers for Welcome to Derry.

The first trailer arrived in May 2025, showing how a series of mysterious disappearances trigger unease in both a Black family that’s new to town and a group of young, bike-riding tweens (not so unlike the Losers’ Club of Muschietti’s films).

A second trailer floated online in July 2025 that offered a deeper look at the series’ many horrors, from the fog-laden creepiness of a missing-persons board to an onslaught of gut-churning gross-outs. Also on display? The crumbling house on Neibolt Street, home to some of the films’ gnarliest sequences.

“People in this town, it’s like the devil’s in ’em,” says Taylour Paige’s Charlotte Hanlon.

Who’s in the IT: Welcome to Derry cast?

Muschietti and his collaborators revealed at San Diego Comic-Con in July 2025 (via USA Today) that Jovan Adepo leads the cast as Leroy Hanlon, the grandfather of Mike Hanlon. Adepo previously starred in another King adaptation, Paramount+’s The Stand (2020). Paige (Zola) plays his wife, Charlotte, who, as we see in the trailer, is unsettled by the behaviors she sees on display in Derry.

Chris Chalk (Gotham) costars as a familiar character to King fans: Dick Hallorann. While Dick briefly appears in It as a cook in the kitchen of the Black Spot, you likely best remember him as the kindly chef at The Shining‘s Overlook Hotel. Scatman Crothers played Dick in Stanley Kubrick’s 1980 adaptation, and Carl Lumbly took over the role in Mike Flanagan’s 2019 take on King’s Shining sequel, Doctor Sleep.

The Welcome to Derry cast also features James Remar (Dexter), Rudy Mancuso (The Flash), Stephen Rider (Daredevil), and Madeleine Stowe (Revenge).

Is Bill Skarsgård returning as Pennywise in IT: Welcome to Derry?

Yes, Bill Skarsgård will reprise his role as Pennywise for Welcome to Derry. You can spot the maniacal clown in both of the series’ trailers.

“We will explore the origins of Pennywise, but like in the book, we’ll do it with a healthy dose of crypticism,” the Muschiettis told EW.

Andy, however, put it a bit differently during the Comic-Con panel. “One of the most fascinating things about the book is the cryptic factor,” he said. “You hear certain things, you get to the end of the book, but you don’t know what It is. We’re going to ruin all this. We’re unveiling all these mysteries, but with very good taste.”

Will there be a Welcome to Derry season 2?

During a January 2025 interview with Radio TU, Andy revealed that the plan is to produce three seasons of Welcome to Derry, with each set in a different era. He confirmed as much during the show’s Comic-Con panel.

“We are basing the three seasons of this series on each of these catastrophic events,” he said on Radio TU (via Bloody Disgusting). “There’s a reason why the story is told backwards. So the first season is 1962, the second season is 1935, and the third season is 1908.”

King’s book explores several tragic events in Derry’s past. In addition to the burning of the Black Spot, there’s the massacre of a gang of bank robbers and an explosion at the town’s Kitchener Ironworks that killed several children. Muschietti noted that each of these events would be explored should the series get renewed for future seasons.

How many episodes will there be of Welcome to Derry?

The first season of Welcome to Derry will consist of nine episodes.

Is there an IT: Welcome to Derry release date?

While an exact date has yet to be announced, HBO Max confirmed that Welcome to Derry will premiere in October.

Where can I watch Welcome to Derry?

Welcome to Derry will stream on HBO Max.

Sign up for Entertainment Weekly‘s free daily newsletter to get breaking TV news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more.

Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly