It: Welcome to Derry confirms second season on HBO; what will this new installment be about?

HBO has confirmed a second season for its horror series "It: Welcome to Derry," which debuted in October 2025. The show, based on Stephen King's iconic 1986 novel and inspired by the recent films, delves into the origins of the malevolent clown Pennywise.

The first season, set in 1962 Derry, Maine, explored the town's prior encounters with Pennywise. The upcoming second season, helmed by filmmakers Andy Muschietti and Jason Fuchs, will shift focus to 1935, during the Great Depression. This period is set 27 years before the events of the initial season.

According to the official synopsis, the plot will center on the "bloody massacre" involving the Bradley gang, a group of bank robbers who stop in Derry for ammunition and encounter unimaginable horror. "Our characters are going to have the mentality of the Great Depression era in the air, with their struggles to survive... And, of course, the social and cultural horrors of the time will also be present," Muschietti told Variety.

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Our characters are going to have the mentality of the Great Depression era in the air, with their struggles to survive... And, of course, the social and cultural horrors of the time will also be present.

Muschietti further described the aesthetic shift for the new season, moving away from suburban comfort toward a "somber and desert-like" setting. "In this case, on the surface, Derry is almost a cemetery," he revealed. "It's a corpse of something because people are exhausted, poor, tired, jobless, homeless. The children do not have a comfortable suburban life. They find themselves in a very different situation. Some are orphans or runaways."

While this particular storyline is an interlude, the season aims to help fans connect different timelines within the "It" universe. The series is planned to eventually explore the period of 1908 in a potential third season.

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In this case, on the surface, Derry is almost a cemetery. It's a corpse of something because people are exhausted, poor, tired, jobless, homeless. The children do not have a comfortable suburban life. They find themselves in a very different situation. Some are orphans or runaways.