The first season of IT: Welcome to Derry reached its climax with the eighth episode, “Winter Fire,” which premiered on December 14, 2025. This finale brought together the large ensemble cast for one last fight against the spreading evil in Derry. The episode wrapped up key storylines for the Hanlon family, the group of brave kids, and the military figures who discovered the town’s dark secret.
For a prequel series, the finale successfully created a complete story while also setting the stage for potential future seasons by deepening the lore of Pennywise and Derry. The large cast, featuring both returning stars and new faces, was central to bringing this haunting chapter to a close.
Meet the Cast of the Season Finale
The finale featured actors from the series’ main and supporting cast, all reprising their roles for the concluding episode. Their characters were split between two primary fronts: the adults and military personnel dealing with the fallout of General Shaw’s actions, and the children who directly follow Pennywise into the freezing fog.
The Adult Protagonists
- Taylour Paige as Charlotte Hanlon: A schoolteacher and mother who moves to Derry with her family. In the finale, her determination to protect her son, Will, and stand up for what is right puts her at the heart of the conflict.
- Jovan Adepo as Leroy Hanlon: A US Air Force Major and Charlotte’s husband. His military expertise becomes crucial as the town descends into chaos.
- Chris Chalk as Dick Hallorann: An airman with psychic abilities. His connection to the supernatural force makes him a key figure in understanding and confronting the threat. Chalk plays a younger version of the character made famous in Stephen King’s The Shining.
- Stephen Rider as Hank Grogan: A film projectionist and father to Ronnie. Wrongly accused of crimes committed by Pennywise, he risks everything to help Charlotte and the children in the finale.
- James Remar as General Francis Shaw: A lieutenant general whose mission to find a supernatural “weapon” for the Cold War inadvertently unleashes greater horror upon Derry.
The Young Heroes
- Clara Stack as Lilly Bainbridge: A girl grappling with loss and guilt who becomes a leader among the children. Her visions drive the group to investigate Derry’s mysteries.
- Matilda Lawler as Marge Truman: Lilly’s friend, who is revealed in the finale to have a future connection to the Losers’ Club from the original IT story.
- Amanda Christine as Veronica “Ronnie” Grogan: Hank’s daughter, who befriends Lilly and joins the fight against Pennywise.
- Blake Cameron James as Will Hanlon: The son of Leroy and Charlotte. His safety becomes a major focus in the finale’s events.
- Arian S. Cartaya as Rich Santos: A Cuban American boy who is friends with Will and has a crush on Marge.
Key Supporting and Antagonistic Roles
- Bill Skarsgård as Pennywise / Bob Gray: The shapeshifting entity that feeds on fear. Skarsgård reprises his film role, portraying both the monstrous Pennywise and the human carnival performer, Bob Gray, from 1908. Executive producer Andy Muschietti described the finale’s portrayal of the creature as an “expanding force,” illustrated by a terrifying fog that envelops the town.
- Madeleine Stowe as Ingrid Kersh / Periwinkle: The head housekeeper at Juniper Hill Asylum and the daughter of Bob Gray. Her tragic quest to connect with the father she believes is trapped within Pennywise makes her a complex and ominous figure.
- Peter Outerbridge as Clint Bowers: The corrupt police chief of Derry.
- Kimberly Guerrero as Rose: A Native American woman who owns a pawn shop and has a long history with General Shaw.
How the Finale Brought Their Stories Together
Episode 8, titled “Winter Fire,” begins with a dense, supernatural fog covering Derry after the military destroys one of the ancient pillars containing IT. Pennywise uses this fog to lead the town’s entranced children away. Lilly, Marge, and Ronnie set off to stop him, following a gruesome trail. Meanwhile, the adults scramble to form a plan as General Shaw’s true, dangerous intentions are fully revealed.
The episode builds toward a major confrontation on the ice, a large set piece that took nearly a month to film. This showdown forces the characters to make hard choices. For instance, Hank Grogan, having been helped by Charlotte earlier, feels a powerful debt to her. Stephen Rider, who plays Hank, explained his character’s motivation: “When nobody else stood for him, Charlotte stood for him… if that means that he has to die in the process… he’s willing to do that” .
While the group manages to temporarily contain IT again, the finale leaves lasting consequences and hints at a broader timeline. A poignant late addition to the episode features Sophia Lillis making a cameo as a young Beverly Marsh, connecting the series directly to the future Losers’ Club. In the scene, Ingrid Kersh encounters Beverly just after her mother’s death, ominously telling her, “No one in Derry ever really dies” .
The episode also reveals that Marge Truman will grow up to be the mother of Richie Tozier, and that Pennywise, who experiences time non-linearly, is aware of this future connection. This sets up potential stories for future seasons, which producers have suggested could explore earlier cycles of Pennywise’s terror in 1935 and 1908.
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