A surprise 30-minute episode titled “A Story of Derry” arrived on HBO Max on October 31, 2026, taking viewers hundreds of years before Pennywise and finally bringing Stephen King‘s cosmic turtle Maturin to live-action for the first time. The shadow drop, which came with almost no advance marketing, also explained exactly how the shape-shifting monster was imprisoned inside the town of Derry.
HBO Max Released “A Story of Derry” Without Warning
The special episode landed on the streaming platform at midnight on Saturday, October 31, 2026, with no prior announcement. HBO Max shared the news on social media with a short post that called it a Halloween gift for horror fans.
“IT’s a surprise Halloween treat,” HBO Max wrote on Instagram, describing the episode as a “never-before-seen special exploring the origins of IT in Derry.”
The episode runs about 30 minutes, roughly half the length of a standard Welcome to Derry episode. It was directed by Tazbah Chavez, known for her work on Reservation Dogs, and written by Cherie Dimaline and Jasmyne Flournoy.
Maturin the Turtle Finally Appears on Screen
The biggest talking point of the special was the live-action debut of Maturin, the ancient cosmic turtle from Stephen King’s 1986 novel It. Maturin is one of the Guardians of the Beams in King’s Dark Tower mythos, a benevolent entity that stands as the opposite of the fear-eating creature known as It or Pennywise.
In the episode, Maturin appears during a vision experienced by Necani, a young member of the Shokopiwah tribe. The turtle is shown as a massive cosmic being made of stars and space. A review from JoBlo described the visual as “an awesome cosmic appearance, made up of the cosmos”.
SFcrowsnest noted that Maturin’s arrival comes “some forty years after the novel came out,” adding that the 1990 miniseries left him out entirely, while Andy Muschietti’s two It films kept him as a background reference for book readers.
How the Shokopiwah Tribe Trapped Pennywise
The special expands on a story first hinted at in Episode 4 of Welcome to Derry‘s first season. Hundreds of years before the events of the main series, three youngsters from the Shokopiwah tribe venture into the forbidden Western Wood. They encounter the ancient evil spirit that the tribe calls Kollu, which later becomes known as Pennywise.
The episode introduces Zahn McClarnon (Dark Winds) as a mysterious warrior who saves the children from the creature using a special dagger. He explains that the monster feeds on fear and once destroyed his entire village, even taking the form of a giant moose. The warrior also reveals that Maturin defeated the creature long before Earth existed and sealed it inside a prison that crashed onto the planet. In a vision, Maturin showed him where the broken pieces of that prison lay, and he crafted the dagger from them.
The episode ends with the tribe using fragments of the fallen star to create 13 pillars that form a barrier around Derry, keeping the creature confined. This directly explains why Pennywise cannot leave the town, a rule that has been central to both the films and the series.
The Cast Brings Back Familiar Faces
The special features several actors from Season 1, including Kiawentiio (Avatar: The Last Airbender) as Necani, Morningstar Angeline as Sesqui, Isabel Deroy-Olson as Kino, Michael Podemski-Bedard as Maneese, and Kimberly Guerrero as a young Rose.
Bill Skarsgård does not appear as Pennywise in this episode. The creature is shown in other forms, including its Galoo form. JoBlo noted that while Skarsgård’s absence is felt, “we still get that classic Pennywise attitude whenever the monster speaks to someone while in other forms”.
The Dark Tower Connection Explained
Maturin’s appearance officially links IT: Welcome to Derry to Stephen King’s larger Dark Tower universe. In King’s mythology, Maturin is one of the twelve Guardians of the Beams, ancient entities that protect the six energy conduits holding up the Dark Tower, the structure at the center of King’s multiverse.
According to the lore, Maturin existed in a void called the Macroverse alongside his cosmic opposite, the creature known as It. While It represents consumption and destruction, Maturin represents creation and protection. In the original novel, the turtle indirectly helps the Losers Club understand how to defeat Pennywise.
ScreenRant reported that Welcome to Derry‘s first season had been scattering turtle imagery throughout its episodes, from a character’s lucky charm to school safety signage, before finally naming Maturin in the season finale. The Halloween special pays off those references in full.
Streaming Numbers and Fan Reactions
The surprise release pushed Welcome to Derry back into HBO Max’s U.S. top 10. The series ranked sixth on the platform’s streaming chart after the episode dropped, marking its first appearance in the top 10 since the Season 1 finale in December 2025.
Streaming tracker StreamRank reported that A Story of Derry went from no chart presence to appearing in 45 countries overnight, reaching the No. 1 spot on HBO Max charts in 16 of them.
Reactions from viewers have been mixed but largely positive about Maturin’s debut. On Letterboxd, one reviewer wrote: “It was nice to see Maturin the turtle and Pennywise in his Galoo form. Honestly I can’t believe they actually made another episode explaining the story of Derry”. Another review simply said: “We are the children of Maturin”.
JoBlo‘s review noted that the special “doesn’t really tell us anything that any loyal King fan wasn’t already aware of,” but added that it “gives some added depth and some more straightforward explanations of things that have been mentioned throughout the show and movies”.
You May Also Like:
View all articles about
Season 2 Is Already in the Works
A second season of IT: Welcome to Derry was officially confirmed on August 17, 2026. The new season will take place in 1935 during the Great Depression and will center on the Bradley Gang Massacre, a bloody event from King’s original novel.
Showrunner Brad Caleb Kane told Deadline that Season 2 will likely arrive in late 2027 or 2028. “We’re writing the scripts. We’re about halfway through the writing of the scripts,” he said. “We have a production schedule, we’re greenlit for a Season 2, and Andy Muschietti’s out there casting”.
Kane also teased that fans will see Pennywise in a “way you’ve never seen that character before,” adding that the new season will be “bigger” than the first.
Also Read: NBC fall 2026 schedule
For more entertainment updates and streaming news, keep checking VvipTimes for the latest reports on your favorite shows and movies.
Leave a Reply