IT: Welcome to Derry season 1 episode guide and complete release schedule: What days do the new episodes drop?

IT: Welcome to Derry is HBO's supernatural horror prequel to the 2017 and 2019 It films. It expands Stephen King's 1986 novel universe. Developed by Andy Muschietti, Barbara Muschietti, and Jason Fuchs, the series preserves the tone of the films. Andy Muschietti directed four episodes, including the pilot, while Fuchs writes key installments. Brad Caleb Kane serves as co-showrunner.

Season 1 spans eight episodes. It premiered on October 26, 2025, on HBO at 9 p.m. ET. Streaming begins simultaneously on Max. Episode 2 arrives early on October 31 at 3 a.m. ET for Halloween. Regular drops resume on Sundays. The finale hits December 14.

Bill Skarsgård returns as Pennywise, the shape-shifting clown. Jovan Adepo leads as Major Leroy Hanlon, a Korean War hero facing racism. Taylour Paige plays his wife Ruth. Chris Chalk is Captain Pauly Russo's base commander. James Remar portrays the town historian. Stephen Rider and Madeleine Stowe recur. Child cast includes Clara Stack as Lilly, Mikkal Karim-Fidler as Teddy, Jack Molloy Legault as Fred, Amanda Christine as Ronnie, Miles Eckhardt as Matty, and Blake Cameron James as young Mike Hanlon. Rudy Mancuso joins in a recurring role.

Set in 1962, in Derry, Maine, the story begins with the arrival of a family. A local boy vanishes. Kids investigate disappearances. Adults uncover military secrets and town curses. Pennywise preys on fear, guilt and isolation. Themes tackled racism, Cold War paranoia and childhood trauma.

IT: Welcome to Derry season 1: Complete release schedule

IT: Welcome to Derry season 1: Episode 1 recap and what lies ahead

Episode 1 "The Pilot" opens cold. Matty, a bullied teen, runs from home. A couple offers a ride to Portland. Their baby transforms into a demonic entity. It tears Matty apart in a bloody birth scene. Four months later, Derry labels him dead. His classmates suspect more. Teddy, a conspiracy nerd, and Fred, a comic book realist, team up. Lilly blames herself for Matty's last fight. Ronnie ties in via her dad's job at the theater.

The kids sneak into a screening of The Music Man. Matty appears on screen alive. Pennywise mimics him to feed on guilt. A demon baby in yellow swaddling attacks. The theater turns red. Pennywise rips Teddy apart on screen. Blood drenches the seats and popcorn. The other kids die off-screen. Ronnie and Lilly escape. Lilly unknowingly carries Teddy's sister's severed hand.

Adult thread introduces Major Leroy Hanlon. Fresh from Korea, he commands Derry Air Force Base. White officers refuse salutes. He plans to move his family to town. Night brings masked intruders. They beat him for classified weapon plans. They vanish without unmasking. It hints at internal tests or external threats.

The episode nods to King's multiverse with the appearance of the Crimson King's baby. It echoes the film's screen-based terror. Pennywise's lampshade of screaming faces recalls Mrs. Kersh. Social layers emerge: racism in the military, Native burial hints, and town denial.

Episode 2 "The Thing in the Dark" escalates. Pennywise hunts survivors. Hanlon faces base sabotage and Lilly hears voices in pipes. Expect Episode 3 "Now You See It" to reveal Derry's cycle history. Later episodes unpack Hanlon's family integration, military experiments and kid alliances. Mid-season builds to a town-wide event. Finale links to the Losers Club era with a major confrontation with Pennywise. Social commentary sharpens on civil rights and secrecy.

Watch IT: Welcome to Derry on HBO Max, Sundays at 9 p.m. ET. Episode 2 is arriving early on October 31, in time for Halloween.

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