Pennywise Is Back and Scarier Than Ever in HBO's IT: Welcome to Derry Trailer

HBO just dropped a fresh trailer for IT: Welcome to Derry, and yes, Bill Skarsgard is back under the greasepaint. If you were wondering how a prequel to the recent films was going to work, this one plants its flag in 1962 and leans into the deep-lore stuff from Stephen King’s book. It’s very much the same universe Andy Muschietti built in the 2017 and 2019 movies, just earlier in Derry’s cycle of nightmares.

The trailer: familiar grin, new era

The footage brings back Skarsgard’s Pennywise and sprinkles in nods to the films—there’s even a quick look at the spot where the Paul Bunyan statue will eventually show up. That’s some inside-baseball Derry geography for the faithful. Tonally, it’s right in line with the feature duology, but set decades earlier while the town is quietly rotting from the inside.

'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.'

So what is this actually adapting?

Instead of redoing the Losers’ Club story, the series pulls from the interludes in King’s 1986 novel—the historical bits that trace Derry’s dark history. That’s why the 1962 setting matters: it lets the show explore previous cycles of Pennywise’s terror without stepping on the movies.

Who is involved

• Cast: Bill Skarsgard returns as Pennywise, joined by Jovan Adepo, Taylour Paige, Chris Chalk, James Remar, Stephen Rider, Madeleine Stowe, and Rudy Mancuso.
• Developed by: Andy Muschietti, Barbara Muschietti, and Jason Fuchs for HBO and Warner Bros. Television.
• Showrunners: Jason Fuchs (who wrote the teleplay for the first episode) and Caleb Kane.
• Directing: Andy Muschietti is directing multiple episodes.
• Executive producers: Andy Muschietti, Barbara Muschietti, Jason Fuchs, Caleb Kane, David Coatsworth, Shelley Meals, Roy Lee, and Dan Lin.

Release plan

IT: Welcome to Derry premieres on HBO and HBO Max on Sunday, October 26, at 9 p.m. ET/PT. The season runs eight episodes, with the finale set for Sunday, December 14, 2025. New posters also dropped alongside the trailer if you want a closer look at the vibe they’re going for.

Short version: Derry’s worst clown is back, the timeline is earlier, and the creative team is the same one that made the movies pop. If the trailer is any indication, this is less a side-quest and more a full-on expansion of that world.