Started October 26, 2025 · Returning Series · Based on 1 season, 8 episodes through December 14, 2025 · TV-MA
IT: Welcome to Derry is a 2025 HBO prequel series set in 1962 Derry, Maine. It follows misfit kids investigating child disappearances linked to an ancient evil entity while a U.S. military unit tries to control the creature as a Cold War weapon. The story centers the Hanlon family’s experiences with racism and adds social themes alongside standard Stephen King horror elements like fear, trauma, and small-town secrets.
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Was our 72% Woke rating accurate?
Breakdown
These are the editorial factors and ratings behind our score for IT: Welcome to Derry.
Woke representation / casting
Prominent black actors headline the Hanlon family and Hallorann roles in a 1962 Maine town setting with historically minimal black population; Latino child added to the kid group; this stands out as deliberate diversity that drew direct complaints about agenda-driven casting.
52%
Woke political dialogue
Dialogue touches on 1960s racism, Civil Rights tensions, and Charlotte’s activist views, but stays mostly tied to period events rather than modern lectures or identity slogans.
38%
Identity-driven story themes
The Hanlon family’s racial struggles and the black Spot historical violence receive sustained focus as forces that strengthen the entity; these run parallel to the core horror but form a clear secondary emphasis.
55%
Western institutional / cultural critique
The U.S. military’s secret project to seize and weaponize the entity for Cold War use portrays government exploitation and overreach; town police corruption and racism are shown enabling harm, though the anti-Communist framing keeps it from pure left-wing messaging.
42%
Woke character or canon changes
The series expands the Hanlon family backstory and adds a Hallorann crossover consistent with King’s wider universe; no identity swaps or major canon rewrites occur.
18%
Anti-woke backlash and complaints
Multiple YouTube videos, Reddit threads specifically call out excessive racism focus, DEI casting in a small 1960s town, and social subplots as detracting from horror.
48%
Creator track record context
Cord Jefferson’s race-centered prior work raises the average, but Stephen King’s moderate liberal record, low-woke directors like Andy Muschietti, and neutral showrunners keep the overall signal moderate rather than dominant.
37%
Production
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