🔗 Share this article Don't Miss One Classic Stephen King Film Before the Series' Next Episode HBO's It: Welcome to Derry is packed with references to the author's vast collection of tales. Apart from the clear ties to It, the show showcases an explicit link to The Shining via the cameo of a young future chef of the Overlook Hotel. Currently, as the story unfolds, Welcome to Derry is integrating one more beloved tale from King which merits another look. The Powerful Story of The Shawshank Redemption While The Shawshank Redemption isn't typically classified as horror, especially compared to much of King's other work, it is a gripping tale about an innocently imprisoned man sentenced to live the rest of his life inside a infamous prison. And it's that very institution that becomes important here, since Shawshank State Prison possesses considerable history throughout King's fictional world — a pattern that continues in It: Welcome to Derry. Some of the stories that reference Shawshank are Dolores Claiborne, Needful Things, Apt Pupil, 11/22/63, and It. Via these stories, we discover about the terrible conditions at Shawshank State Prison and several of those imprisoned there, including the boyfriend of one belonging to Pennywise's early victims, who was found guilty of armed robbery. So far, however, the most we've learned concerning Shawshank was through the perspective of the protagonist in The Shawshank Redemption, played by Tim Robbins in the 1994 movie. Andy ends up in Shawshank after being wrongly convicted, and experiences assaulted and raped by fellow inmates, and taken advantage of by the authority figures for his financial knowledge. It takes him 28 years to dig his way out from Shawshank, prior to crawling "through sewage" to take back his freedom. Shawshank's Role in Welcome to Derry Regarding It: Welcome to Derry, viewers initially discovered of Shawshank's inclusion via an initial preview for the series, in which a prison bus was seen with the name displayed on its side. In episode 2, we learn which character is probably headed to Shawshank. Though we know he did not responsible for the child deaths initially, Hank Grogan (Stephen Rider), dad to Ronnie (Amanda Christine), gets taken into custody for the crimes. The preview for the next episode, "Now You See It," shows an officer informing Hank in his cell, "Do you know what happens to child murderers at that prison?" The Implications for Hank and Ronnie Given that the actual murderer in the town is a primordial entity from another world hunting and killing kids, Hank's prospects of clearing his name appear slim. And even if he ends up to Shawshank and viewers don't follow him inside, understanding what we do regarding Shawshank indicates that his experience would be far from pleasant. More importantly, however, this situation could threaten his daughter. He acts as her protector. Horrible things are happening around Derry that nobody, young or old, understands and Ronnie just has her recently formed of friends to depend on. She's going to need her dad as the story progresses, but if Shawshank has any say, she may be without help. One thing seems clear: Hank lacks three decades to dig to freedom. It: Welcome to Derry episodes 1 and 2 are currently available on HBO Max. Additional installments are released each week on Sundays.