A new series has arrived that feels familiar to fans of a major Netflix hit. It: Welcome to Derry, the prequel to the popular It films, premiered on October 26, 2025 on HBO and HBO Max. The show expands the world of Stephen King’s classic novel and the two blockbuster movies. With its setting in the early 1960s and a focus on a group of young people confronting a supernatural evil in their small town, it is drawing strong comparisons to Stranger Things. For viewers looking for their next spooky, character-driven story, Welcome to Derry might be the perfect new watch.
The Story and Its Stranger Things Vibe
It: Welcome to Derry is set in 1962 in the eerie town of Derry, Maine. The story follows two main groups. The first is the Hanlon family—Major Leroy Hanlon, his wife Charlotte, and their son Will—who have just moved to Derry and soon discover the town’s dark secrets. The second is a new group of kids, led by a girl named Lilly, who begin to investigate the strange and terrifying events happening around them after a local boy disappears.
This setup—a small town with a dark secret, a mysterious government operation, and a band of kids uncovering a supernatural threat—will feel immediately familiar to fans of Stranger Things. The show’s creators have leaned into this period setting. Executive producer Jason Fuchs explained the appeal, saying the “idealized version of America that you see in 1962 plays such a contrast to the reality below the surface of Derry; this sort of rot and the terror and the fears.”
The show also weaves in serious real-world issues of the time, such as the Cold War and the pervasive racism the Hanlon family encounters. This adds a layer of historical gravity to the horror, making the town’s darkness feel more real and menacing.
Meet the Characters and Cast
The series features a large ensemble cast, blending adult characters with the younger heroes.
- The Hanlon Family: Jovan Adepo plays Major Leroy Hanlon, an Air Force pilot who faces prejudice on the military base. Taylour Paige portrays his wife, Charlotte, a schoolteacher who gets drawn into the mystery through her students. Their son, Will, is played by Blake Cameron James.
- The New “Losers’ Club”: Clara Stack plays Lilly Bainbridge, a girl dealing with her father’s death who becomes the driving force in investigating the town’s horrors. She is joined by her friends, including Marge, Teddy Uris, and Phil Malkin.
- Key Adult Figures: James Remar plays General Shaw, who leads a secret military project in Derry. Chris Chalk takes on the role of a younger Dick Hallorann, a character famously from Stephen King’s The Shining. Chalk described his version of the character as not yet the kindly man fans remember, noting, “Dick Hallorann, in this version, has no interest or no desire to be kind to anybody.”
- The Terror Returns: Of course, Bill Skarsgård returns to his iconic role as Pennywise the Clown. His castmates described the chilling experience of seeing him on set. James Remar said it was an “almost otherworldly experience” to see the sweet actor transform into the terrifying creature.
A Strong Start and Critical Reception
The show is off to a powerful start. The premiere episode drew 5.7 million viewers across its first three days, making it the third-biggest series debut in the history of HBO Max, behind only House of the Dragon and The Last of Us.
Critics have noted the similarities to the hit Netflix show, with some reviews pointing out that the series “plays like a Stranger Things knockoff.” However, other reviews have been very positive, with one Forbes review calling it “among the best and most King-like, faithful expansions of his terrifying worlds.” The show has been praised for its big horror set pieces and its commitment to feeling like a Stephen King novel, though some critics feel the pacing can be slow and the characters outside of the scares are not as deep.
More Than Just a Scary Clown
A key element that connects Welcome to Derry to Stranger Things is its focus on the characters’ personal struggles alongside the supernatural threat. The series uses its horror to explore real human fears, like grief, racism, and social isolation.
Jovan Adepo highlighted this approach, stating it’s important “to ground the story in something that’s real… So that by the time the sensational element of it starts to play, you find yourself really caring for these characters.” Taylour Paige added a deeper layer, reflecting on how the show’s human evils connect to the supernatural one: “before we even get to the clown, you think about the warping of evil and the banality of evil… how that kind of energy… could even attract a clown that kills children.”
The series is planned as a multi-season story, with director Andy Muschietti revealing that the plan is to have three seasons, each moving further back in time to explore different cycles of Pennywise’s terror, with the next seasons set in 1935 and 1908. New episodes of the first season, which will have eight parts, are released weekly on HBO and HBO Max, building up to the season finale on December 14, 2025.
Also Read: It: Welcome to Derry Arrives, Earning Praise as a Top-Tier Stephen King Adaptation
