IT: Welcome to Derry – everything you need to know about the new Max horror series

IT: Welcome to Derry looks poised to whisk viewers back to the nightmare-inducing world of Stephen King's It.

First announced back in 2022, this HBO prequel show hails from the creative team behind the two recent feature adaptations, Andy Muschietti, Barbara Muschietti and Jason Fuchs. Andy Muschietti directed several episodes with Fuchs on producing and scripting duties. It marks the second small-screen appearance of sewer-dwelling clown Pennywise after he first terrorized a generation in the cult classic 1990 miniseries.

Fans of the door stopper tome who are familiar with those existing adaptations are in for a treat. This upcoming serialized take is heading back in time to three eras of Pennywise's reign previously unexplored onscreen.

As it goes, we've accumulated all the latest info on the series, from its tentative release date down to the rumors about future seasons, so you can get your fill of everything related to It: Welcome to Derry right here.

Does It: Welcome to Derry have a release date?

Initially slated for a Halloween 2024 release, the premiere was pushed back in light of the writers strike. It is now slated for a September 2025 release according to Andy Muschietti in a January 2025 interview.

The nine-episode first season started filming in downtown Port Hope, Ontario in May 2023, taking a significant pause for the writers strikes, eventually wrapping in August 2024. Producer and writer Jason Fuchs posted on social media to celebrate:

The caption reads "237 shoot days later… That is a picture wrap on this season of Welcome to Derry. Surreal. What a ride. Can't wait for you to see this thing." That 237 sure feels like a nice tie-in to King, doesn't it?

Word from HBO executive Francesca Orsi in January 2025 hinted at an early 2026 release but a TV Line insider confirms – in addition to Muschietti's comments – that HBO is still on track for a 2025 release.

If we take a peek at the previous movies' release dates, it makes sense that the show will follow the same trend and release in September. 2017's It wrapped filming in September 2016 and post-production took the better part of a year, with the movie releasing in September 2017.

Considering the audience for this series – horror hounds – September sounds like the perfect drop ahead of Halloween season. As soon as we get a confirmed day and date, we'll post that right here.

It: Welcome to Derry: Has a trailer been released?

We've yet to score a full-length trailer but HBO has offered up a few fleeting glimpses of live-action footage from the series.

At only 6 seconds, the first is positively BRISK, but gives us an idea of the tone of the show as we hear a man (Mike Hanlon's father, perhaps?) say, "This ain't America. This is Derry" as we see the same person holding a flashlight, looking in terror at something offscreen.

This cuts to a shot of the Derry township sign followed by snatches of kids dripping with viscous goop, banging on doors, and screaming inside a movie theater. It ends with a person behind a glass storefront grinning like the Smile demon.

The second clip is 7 seconds long and opens with a group of kids pushing their bikes beneath a bridge as a train passes overhead. One girl asks "What did you see?" and a boy responds "A clown" as we see the little tyke pulled underwater by a rotting arm.

I'd hazard a guess that a bigger trailer is set to drop in the next couple of months. We will of course update you with any future clips as soon as they land.

It: Welcome to Derry Cast

A story like IT: Welcome to Derry demands a sprawling ensemble and the lineup is stacked:

• Jovan Adepo
• Chris Chalk
• Taylour Paige
• James Remar
• Stephen Rider
• Bill Skarsgård
• Dean Yool
• Madeleine Stowe
• Alixandra Fuchs
• Kimberly Norris Guerrero
• Tyner Rushing
• Dorian Grey
• Thomas Mitchell
• BJ Harrison
• Peter Outerbridge
• Shane Marriott
• Chad Rook
• Joshua Odjick
• Morningstar Angeline
• Rudy Mancuso

Taylour Paige, Jovan Adepo, Chris Chalk and James Remar were all announced back in April 2023 by HBO Max– but their roles remain, like most of the cast, under wraps. It appears Adepo might be playing Mike Hanlon's father, Will, as early promotional photos show him in military uniform with his surname stitched onto his attire.

Well over a year later, Deadline announced Bill Skarsgard's return as the clown Pennywise. Skarsgard performed in the 2017 and 2019 It movies, delivering a performance that carries echoes of Tim Curry's Pennywise from the '90s miniseries yet is entirely his own.

It: Welcome to Derry story and rumors

Described as a prequel series, IT: Welcome to Derry will take place before the events of the 2017 feature film. HBO's official logline is pretty brief: "Set in the world of Stephen King’s IT universe, IT: WELCOME TO DERRY is based on King’s IT novel and expands the vision established by filmmaker Andy Muschietti in the feature films IT and IT Chapter Two."

According to reports, it revolves around what Andy Muschietti terms "interludes" from King's novel. In the book, we learn details about the history of Derry and Pennywise's previous attempts to bring havoc to the town from Mike Hanlon. This first season runs 9 episodes long and is set to explore a specific set of events depicted in Hanlon's writing, namely; the burning of the Black Spot.

Because the film adaptations shifted the action from the 1950s to the 1980s, these earlier periods will also be nudged forward. The main story of the show will take place in 1962 – exactly 27 years before the story depicted in the 2017 film – and unravel the story of the Black Spot. In the novel, we learn about the Black Spot from Hanlon's father, Will, who recants the tale to him from his hospital bed.

During Will Hanlon's stint in the Air Force, he and his fellow airmen open a bar for Black patrons which is targeted by white supremacists. During the ensuing tragedy, Pennywise manifests in the form of a giant bird, snatching its first victim.

While the focus this time around is on new characters and new scenarios, the Muschiettis assure fans that familiar themes will resonate into the show such as friendship, loss and the power of unified belief, but in addition, Andy told Entertainment Weekly that the show "focuses also on the use of fear as a weapon, which is one of the things that is also relevant to our times."

What’s most exciting is that this will bring to the screen moments from King’s extensive It lore that have previously only existed on page.

Will there be future seasons of It: Welcome to Derry?

As it stands now, the plan for the series is to roll out three seasons — each delving into a specific epoch of Pennywise’s reign in the small Maine town. Muschietti, in an interview with Radio TU, explained his plan for what happens beyond season one.

“It’s a story that’s based on the interludes of the book. The interludes are basically chapters that reflect Mike Hanlon’s research… For 27 years, it’s the guy trying to figure out what it is, what did it, who did it, who saw it, and all that stuff.

“So they talk about catastrophic events from the past, like the fire in the Black Spot…. the massacre of the Bradley Gang, a gang of bank robbers in the ’30s… and the explosion of the Kitchener Ironworks. Every time [Pennywise] comes out of hibernation, there is a catastrophic event that happens at the beginning of that cycle."

Each season's story is slated to unravel 27 years before the first. Muschietti goes on to tease: "There’s a reason why the story is told backwards. So the first season is 1962, the second season is 1935, and the third season is 1908.”

It’s hard to imagine a series based on a popular property such as IT would fail to score a season two renewal, so we’d hazard a guess and say a sophomore season will likely drop in late 2026 or early 2027. Of course, we will keep you updated right here!

You might also like

• 9 new horror movies on Netflix, Shudder, Max and more in April 2025
• I'm obsessed with Netflix's new horror comedy movie that has a glowing 94% Rotten Tomatoes rating
• South by Southwest has given me 4 new horror movies to look forward to, including one from a dog's perspective