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The clown's influence on the children of Welcome to Derry molds them long into adulthood, transforming them into the very adults who perpetuate the town's cycle of hatred ongoing. It preys most easily on kids from broken households — children who frequently grow up to replicate the same patterns as their parents. But, the Hanlon household stands apart as one of the few households that never splinters, which could clarify why Mike Hanlon, even after choosing to stay in the town, persists as the sole member who never fully falls under Pennywise's sway.

Hanlon Household's Unique Resilience

In episode 4 of Welcome to Derry, Leroy finally becomes more aware of the paranormal entities enveloping the neighborhood, especially when It begins tormenting his son, Will, during their angling excursion. The Hanlon family consists of some of the few grown-ups who are cognizant that things are not right with the town, especially the father, who was shown to be receptive to psychic abilities when he was able to detect a fellow psychic's employment of it in episode 3. Subsequently, he sees one of the clown's trademark balloons outside his residence. The ability, coupled with his inability to feel fear, along with the base of his household, could be why he's able to see the entity's manifestations. But what if that psychic sensitivity is hereditary, and a key factor Mike Hanlon is among the few individuals in Derry who resisted succumbing to its cruelty?

Will is part of the collective of children at his school being tormented by the clown. All his school friends come from dysfunctional families, with caregivers who don't believe they're being targeted. The cause he is being pursued is because of the viciousness of the town, combined with his potential sensitivity to psychic abilities, which makes him susceptible. This family are fundamentally outsiders in Derry during the early sixties, which lends itself towards the family feeling something is off about the town from the onset. They also have a solid base that remains unbroken, unlike the folks who come from the area, with bonds that have decayed within.

Historical Context

Drawing from the It novel, we know the juvenile Will will find himself at the infamous nightclub, where Hallorann will save him from a fire that the town bigots of Derry will cause. In the 2017 movie, we observe that Will has a boy named Mike and that the father eventually perishes in a configration, with Leroy surviving his own son and taking his grandson in. The official story in the motion picture is that the parents were on drugs, but now that we see him in Welcome to Derry, that's difficult to accept. Perhaps the timid youth, once he grew up, leaned into drink to rid himself of the torments, or maybe the rotten town affected him initially, with the KKK ultimately finishing the job it started years ago. Whether through the terror of Pennywise or via the malice of the town, seeded by It, the creature in the end achieves the last laugh on him.

Leroy's Transformation

This chain of events would explain how Leroy transforms so radically from what we witness in It: Chapter 1 and the prequel. In his later years, Leroy seems resentful and much stricter with his discipline. Since he survived his own offspring, it's comprehensible to observe such a profound shift. However, his words carry more weight since we are aware he's seen Pennywise's hauntings and the impacts they had on his child. In the opening scene of the movie, we observe Mike hesitate to use a bolt gun on a animal at Leroy's farm. His grandfather reprimands him for hesitating and offers an metaphor that leads to a kill-or-be-killed situation.

“There are two places you can be in this world. You can be in the open like us, or you can be in there,” he says as he points to the sheep. “You dawdle hemming and hawing, and another is going to make that choice. Except you will be unaware it until you experience that bolt between your eyes.”

In hindsight, this could represent a piece of prediction, something he wishes he had told his own child. Maybe he desires he had done something in his past, but for some reason, he was unable to avoid the repellent allure of the town.