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Pennywise's impact on the young residents of Welcome to Derry shapes them long into adulthood, twisting them into the exact individuals who keep the community's pattern of hatred ongoing. The creature finds easy targets on children from fractured households — youngsters who often mature to repeat the same patterns as their parents. But, the Hanlon family distinguishes itself as one of the few family unit that never splinters, which could clarify why Mike, even after choosing to stay in the town, persists as the sole member who doesn't completely succumb under Pennywise's sway.

The Hanlon Family's Unique Resilience

In the fourth installment of the series, Leroy Hanlon at last grows more aware of the paranormal entities enveloping the neighborhood, especially when It starts haunting his child, Will Hanlon, during their angling excursion. The Hanlon family comprises some of the few adults who are cognizant that something is amiss with the municipality, especially the father, who was revealed to be receptive to the Shining when he was capable of sensing Dick Hallorann's use of it in episode 3. Later, he sees one of Pennywise's signature balloons outside his residence. This gift, alongside his inability to feel fear, combined with the base of his household, could be why he's able to see the entity's manifestations. However, consider if that shining is hereditary, and one of the reasons Mike is among the few adults in the town who resisted succumbing to the town's malevolence?

Will is part of the collective of children at his school being terrorized by the clown. All his school friends come from dysfunctional families, with caregivers who don't believe they're being targeted. The reason Will is being haunted is due to the viciousness of the town, paired with his likely receptiveness to psychic abilities, which renders him vulnerable. The Hanlons are fundamentally strangers in Derry during the early sixties, which lends itself towards the family sensing something is off about the town from the beginning. Additionally, they possess a good foundation that remains unbroken, in contrast to the folks who originate in the area, with bonds that have decayed within.

Backstory Connections

Drawing from the It novel, we understand the juvenile Will Hanlon will find himself at the infamous nightclub, where Hallorann will rescue him from a fire that the town bigots of Derry will cause. In the 2017 film, we observe that he has a boy named Mike and that the father ultimately dies in a fire, with Leroy outliving his own child and adopting his grandchild. The official story in the motion picture is that Mike's parents were on substances, but now that we see Will in Welcome to Derry, that's difficult to accept. Perhaps the shy youth, once he became an adult, leaned into drink to rid himself of the hauntings, or perhaps the rotten town affected him first, with the hate group ultimately completing the job it began years ago. Be it via the fear of Pennywise or via the malice of the community, seeded by It, It eventually gets the last laugh on him.

The Father's Evolution

These occurrences would explain how Leroy changes so drastically from what we witness in the first film and Welcome to Derry. In his later years, Leroy seems resentful and much harsher with his discipline. Because he outlived his own son, it's understandable to see such a drastic change. Nonetheless, his words hold greater significance since we are aware he's witnessed Pennywise's hauntings and the effects they had on his son. In the opening scene of It, we observe the boy hesitate to use a bolt gun on a animal at Leroy's farm. Leroy reprimands him for hesitating and offers an analogy that results in a kill-or-be-killed situation.

“There are two places you can be in this existence. You can be out here like us, or you can be in there,” he states as he points to the sheep. “You waste time hemming and hawing, and someone is going to make that choice. Except you will be unaware it until you feel that projectile in your head.”

In hindsight, this could represent a piece of foreshadowing, a lesson he regrets not imparting to his own child. Perhaps he desires he had done something in his youth, but for some reason, he couldn't resist the sickening attraction of Derry.