HBO's It Spinoff Debuts Next Sooner Than Planned on HBO's Digital Service
Excitement is building for the Stephen King adaptation Welcome to Derry, that's been receiving positive feedback and incorporating references from other Stephen King works. Just one day after launch, the network announced that episode two will debut sooner than expected, released fittingly for October 31st.
Schedule Change Information
Beginning on the last day of October at 3 a.m. EST, episode two of It: Welcome to Derry will launch on HBO Max, before its traditional TV airing. Future chapters of the show's first season will continue to air on the weekend on HBO and HBO Max, leading up to the season finale on Sunday, December 14.
Show Background
Based in Stephen King’s It universe, It: Welcome to Derry borrows elements from the original story while enlarging the universe realized by the It movie director in It and It Chapter Two. The original It centered on kids and teens battling terrifying threats, thus it's suitable that the prequel upholds that legacy. Yet, the premiere episode of the streaming show shows it intended to increase the tension, offering even more intense scares than the cinematic versions and creating a brutal tone for the upcoming episodes.
Premise and Ideas
Set in 1962, this show presents a fresh cast of adults and children living in a seemingly idyllic town hiding a dark secret. The town operates on a brutal, periodic loop—one marked by violence, bigotry, and the supernatural, as a terrifying being reappears every 27 years. While the series might sound like it skews too close to the movies initially, what sets apart the HBO Max series is its dual perspective—unfolding through the eyes of both children and adults simultaneously. Children are particularly vulnerable to the entity's fear, but the adults don't escape confronting their individual fears born from Derry’s deep-seated bigotry and hidden paranormal elements.
Episode 2 premieres on the 31st of October at 12 a.m. Pacific Time.
