An Early Halloween Treat for Horror Fans
This Halloween, fans of Stephen King’s scary world will get a frightful surprise. HBO said that the second episode of IT: Welcome to Derry, the prequel series to It and It: Chapter Two, will come out early, just in time for Halloween weekend.
On Friday, October 31, at 12 a.m. PT / 3 a.m. ET, HBO Max will show the episode “The Thing in the Dark” for the first time. It will then air on HBO on Sunday, November 2, at 9/8c. The early release is meant to offer horror fans the perfect scary start to their Halloween celebrations.
The Return of Pennywise the Dancing Clown
Bill Skarsgård plays Pennywise the Dancing Clown again, bringing back the evil being that feeds on dread. Skarsgård’s return to the series makes it clear that it is a true continuation of the movie adaptations. He is most known for his terrifying role in Andy Muschietti’s It flicks.
The show goes further into the history of Derry’s terrifying curse, looking at how Pennywise’s reign of terror began and how it has affected generations of people in the cursed Maine town.
A Star-Studded Ensemble Brings Derry to Life
Along with Skarsgård, It: Welcome to Derry has a great cast that includes Taylour Paige and Jovan Adepo as Charlotte and Leroy Hanlon, Chris Chalk as Dick Hallorann, and James Remar as General Francis Shaw.
Stephen Rider, Amanda Christine, Clara Stack, and Matilda Lawler complete the cast. Madeleine Stowe, Rudy Mancuso, Blake Cameron James, and Arian S. Cartaya also have supporting parts. The combination of experienced and fresh actors in the ensemble serves to show both the nostalgia and the new vitality of King’s world.
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Visionaries Behind the Series
It: Welcome to Derry brings Andy Muschietti back together with his producing partner Barbara Muschietti and co-producer Jason Fuchs. All three of them were important to the success of the It movies.
Andy Muschietti directs a number of episodes, including the first one, to make sure that the show has the same creepy mood and stunning visuals that made his previous adaptations so popular across the world. Brad Caleb Kane joins the creative team as an executive producer to assist the story in going in new directions.
Setting the Stage for Pennywise’s Dark Origins
The first season is set in 1962 and follows the Hanlon family as they move to Derry just as a fresh cycle of Pennywise’s evil starts. The show mixes psychological tension, small-town intrigue, and otherworldly horror to take viewers back to a time when fear was always there, even when it wasn’t obvious.
HBO said that the show “expands on the vision set by filmmaker Andy Muschietti in It and It: Chapter Two” by exploring the mythology of Pennywise’s beginnings and the early history of the evil spirit that haunts Derry.
A Three-Season Plan Already in Motion
Muschietti talked about ideas for three seasons that are all related and take place at various times in a recent interview.
- Season 1 takes place in 1962 and tells the story of Pennywise’s early rise.
- Season 2 will look at what happened in 1935 and show how Derry became worse.
- Season 3 will go back to 1908, which might reveal the entity’s real beginnings.
This vast chronology offers a story with many layers that combines decades of fear, mythology, and human weakness.
How to Watch It: Welcome to Derry
It: Welcome to Derry airs on HBO and HBO Max at the same time on Sundays at 9/8c. The first episode of the series aired on October 26, 2025, and fresh episodes come out every week until the last one on December 21.
Episode 2 comes out early, giving fans a spooky Halloween treat: they can go back into Derry’s cursed tunnels to meet Pennywise again before the rest of the season starts.
The Fear Returns—And It’s Just Beginning
It: Welcome to Derry is already a must-see for horror fans because of its creepy images, superb acting, and chilling tale. HBO is certain that “The Thing in the Dark” will become even more popular and that it might become the next great horror TV program.
Derry is waiting for those who are courageous enough to confront their fears this Halloween. Pennywise is smiling.
