Warning: The Following Contains Massive Spoilers for It: Welcome to Derry Episode 1
Last night saw the long-awaited premiere of It: Welcome to Derry on HBO, and to say it ended with a scene that shocked audiences would be an understatement. After setting up what we thought would be our main protagonists that the series would follow for the remainder of the season, director and creator of the show, Andy Muschietti, pulled a massive swerve and killed off almost everyone we had gotten comfortable with.
The moment came in brutal fashion when Lilly, Teddy, Phil, and Susie enlisted the help of Ronnie to try and figure out what happened to Matty Clements, a young boy who disappeared months earlier, and they believed was trying to communicate with them in some way. After making their way to the Capitol Theater to watch The Music Man for clues, they got more than they bargained for when the monstrous, deformed baby we saw at the beginning of the episode flew out of the screen and killed off everyone except Lilly and Ronnie.
It was certainly a bold choice, but a necessary one, according to Muschietti. Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter after the series premiere of It: Welcome to Derry, the creator discussed why the new Loser’s Club had to go. “You want to create an event that gives the audience a sense that if these kids were smoked at the end of the first episode, nothing is sacred,” he said, adding:
“In this world, no one will be safe. So, technically, that was the intention.”
‘It: Welcome to Derry’ Subverts Expectations
The moment wasn’t just meant to surprise audiences, however, as Muschietti also touched on the fact that he wants the series to be different from the movies. Having already made It Chapters One and Two, he didn’t want to just come in to Welcome to Derry and do the same things. “It responds to the idea of subverting certain aspects,” he said, continuing:
“We did two movies already. One thing that we didn’t want was to — given that we’re using the same tone and the style as the movies — is get people too familiar [with the story mechanics]. We really wanted to create a subversion to get people excited. It has to do also with raising the volume a little in terms of intensity and spectacle.”
He definitely got people excited, as the ending of the first episode of It: Welcome to Derry is all the talk on social media this morning. Surprised viewers are sharing their thoughts on the new series, commenting how they can’t believe that the kids died at the end. “Shocked that he already took out four people in the first episode,” said one user on X, while another added:
“Welcome to Derry was the scariest thing I’ve watched in ages. Excited for the next episodes!”
Speaking of the next episode, it will deviate from the norm and drop this Friday, October 31 as a Halloween treat for viewers, instead of on its regular day of Sunday. With what we just saw last night, there’s no telling where Muschietti and company will take us next.
- Release Date
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October 26, 2025
- Network
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HBO
- Directors
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Andy Muschietti