🔗 Share this article

Pennywise's influence on the young residents of the Derry series shapes them long into adulthood, transforming them into the very adults who keep the town's pattern of hatred ongoing. It finds easy targets on kids from fractured households — children who frequently grow up to repeat the same patterns as their guardians. But, the Hanlon household distinguishes itself as a rare example of a family unit that never splinters, which could clarify why Mike Hanlon, even after choosing to stay in the town, remains the sole member who doesn't completely succumb under the clown's influence.

The Hanlon Family's Unique Resistance

In episode 4 of the series, Leroy Hanlon at last grows more aware of the paranormal entities surrounding the neighborhood, especially when the entity begins tormenting his child, Will, during their fishing trip. The Hanlon family consists of a small number of adults who are cognizant that things are not right with the town, especially the father, who was revealed to be sensitive to the Shining when he was able to detect a fellow psychic's employment of it in the third episode. Later, Leroy sees one of Pennywise's signature balloons outside his house. The ability, coupled with his failure to feel fear, along with the foundation of his household, may be why he's capable of perceiving the entity's manifestations. However, consider if that shining is hereditary, and one of the reasons Mike Hanlon is among the few adults in the town who didn't lose themselves to its cruelty?

Will is part of the group of children at his school being tormented by the clown. All his school friends hail from dysfunctional families, with parents who don't believe they're being haunted. The reason Will is being haunted is because of the cruelty of the community, combined with his likely receptiveness to shine, which renders him vulnerable. This family are fundamentally outsiders in Derry during the early sixties, which lends itself towards the household feeling something is off about the town from the onset. Additionally, they possess a solid base that remains unbroken, unlike the folks who originate in the town, with relationships that have decayed internally.

Historical Context

Based on the It novel, we understand the juvenile Will will end up at the Black Spot, where the psychic will rescue him from a blaze that the town bigots of Derry will ignite. In the 2017 film, we see that Will has a boy named Mike and that Will ultimately dies in a fire, with Leroy surviving his own son and taking his grandson in. The public account in the motion picture is that the parents were on substances, but given our current view of him in Welcome to Derry, that's difficult to accept. Perhaps the shy youth, once he became an adult, leaned into alcohol to free himself of the torments, or perhaps the rotten environment affected him initially, with the KKK ultimately finishing the job it started long before. Whether through the fear of Pennywise or through the malice of the town, seeded by Pennywise, It eventually achieves the last laugh on him.

The Father's Evolution

This chain of events would explain how the elder Hanlon changes so radically from what we witness in It: Chapter 1 and the prequel. In his older age, he appears bitter and much harsher with his parenting. Because he outlived his own son, it's understandable to observe such a profound shift. Nonetheless, his statements hold greater significance now that we know he's seen the clown's activities and the impacts they wrought upon his child. In the opening scene of It, we observe Mike hesitate to use a bolt gun on a sheep at the family property. Leroy reprimands him for hesitating and offers an analogy that results in a survival-of-the-fittest situation.

“There are two places you can be in this world. You can be out here like we are, or you can be trapped inside,” Leroy states as he points to the sheep. “You waste time indecisive, and someone is going to make that choice. But you will be unaware it until you experience that projectile between your eyes.”

Looking back, this could be a bit of foreshadowing, a lesson he regrets not imparting to his own son. Maybe he wishes he had acted differently in his youth, but for some reason, he couldn't resist the sickening allure of the town.