IT: Welcome to Derry is the upcoming HBO Max horror show that will continue to give us more of Bill Skarsgård’s Pennywise. The show takes place during Pennywise’s 1962 cycle of terror that explores the Dancing Clown’s origins.
The show shares a lot of similarities with Stanley Kubrick’s classic The Shining, which was released in 1980 and is still considered a staple of horror. We explore three reasons, some obvious and some not, why The Shining is a must-watch before you enter the town of Derry.
1. Inspired By the King of Horror’s Novels
Image by Kevin Payravi , licensed under the CC Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons
Both IT: Welcome to Derry and The Shining are inspired by Stephen King’s novels of the same name, serving as loose adaptations where the directors take creative liberties. The King of Horror has had a successful career of smash hits on paper and on screens, turning effective scares into giant sales conversions.
With just a few weeks to go until HBO premieres the prequel series, Stephen King gave his reaction to the upcoming IT: Welcome to Derry on Threads: “WELCOME TO DERRY is amazing. First episode is terrifying.” Are you excited? 🎈Read more: https://t.co/cSOCnnfTxI pic.twitter.com/z6eXQReX7a— Screen Rant (@screenrant) October 9, 2025
Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining follows the story of a family in the huge, empty Overlook Hotel on snow-capped hills. What follows months of isolation and supernatural terror is a tale of insanity and haunting images of decaying bodies, psychological horror, and an iconic Jack Nicholson performance. This movie serves as a perfect Stephen King-esque warm-up for the debut episode.
2. Children In the Face of Unknown Horror
Danny Lloyd in The Shining | Credit: Warner Bros.
The story of It followed a group of kids (infamously called the Losers’ Club) on a quest to eradicate Pennywise’s terror from the town of Derry, Maine. Similarly, IT: Welcome to Derry will include a new set of misfit kids. On the other side of the spectrum, The Shining featured one scared child who was stuck between supernatural terror and his father.
The Shining (1980) pic.twitter.com/nJJpTj7Xnv— Best of Kubrick (@KubrickPoint) October 20, 2025
The kid in The Shining is often subjected to hauntings no human ever should, as he has a special gift that lets him connect with a different realm. Through the movie, he sees gruesome images and specters akin to what the children will have to face in IT: Welcome to Derry. This focus on telling a horror story through the lens of a child burrows deep in our skin as we watch naivety get destroyed.
3. A Shared Universe Implication
Scatman Crothers as Dick Hallorann in The Shining | Credit: Warner Bros.
It and The Shining exist within the same Stephen King universe, where recurring characters, locations, and supernatural phenomena link many of King’s stories together. This universe is part of King’s “macroverse,” linked by character Dick Hallorann, the chef at the Overlook Hotel in The Shining.
Hallorann also appears in It, specifically in a flashback about the 1930s Black Spot nightclub fire in Derry, which was a result of Pennywise’s doing. IT: Welcome to Derry makes this connection explicit by featuring a young Dick Hallorann (Chris Chalk).
Showrunners Andy and Barbara Muschietti confirmed that Welcome to Derry directly ties It to The Shining and even The Shawshank Redemption, expanding King’s cinematic universe (via Collider). Here are important details of The Shining and IT: Welcome to Derry.
CategoryThe Shining (1980 Film)IT: Welcome to Derry (2025 HBO Series)Based onStephen King’s 1977 novel The ShiningStephen King’s 1986 novel ItTypePsychological horror filmSupernatural horror TV prequel seriesDirector(s)Stanley KubrickAndy Muschietti (multiple episodes)Writer(s)Stanley Kubrick and Diane JohnsonJason Fuchs, Brad Caleb Kane, Helen ShangMain CastJack Nicholson (Jack Torrance), Shelley Duvall (Wendy), Danny Lloyd (Danny), Scatman Crothers (Dick Hallorann)Taylour Paige (Charlotte Hanlon), Jovan Adepo (Leroy Hanlon), Blake Cameron James (Will Hanlon), Chris Chalk (Dick Hallorann), Bill Skarsgård (Pennywise)SettingOverlook Hotel, Colorado, during winter isolationDerry, Maine, during Spring-Winter 1962PremiseA struggling writer’s descent into madness while caring for an isolated hotel haunted by its violent pastA prequel showing Pennywise’s emergence and Derry’s early cycle of terror involving the Hanlon familyUniverse LinksFeatures psychic “shining” abilityDick Hallorann later appears in It loreDirectly ties into The Shining through young Dick Hallorann and Derry’s shared mythologyNetwork/StudioWarner Bros. (Theatrical release)HBO / Warner Bros. TelevisionRelease DateMay 23, 1980October 26, 2025Episode Count–8
Fans of King and his universe will see an amalgamation of his characters along with easter eggs to his other novels, but only time will tell if IT: Welcome to Derry delivers on its promise of scares.
Have you seen The Shining? What did you think about it? Let us know in the comments.
The Shining is currently streaming on HBO Max in the U.S.
IT: Welcome to Derry will premiere on HBO on October 26, 2025.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
