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The clown's influence on the children of the Derry series molds them throughout their adult lives, transforming them into the very adults who keep the town's cycle of animosity alive. The creature finds easy targets on kids from broken homes — children who frequently grow up to repeat the same patterns as their parents. But, the Hanlon family stands apart as one of the few family unit that never splinters, which could clarify why Mike, even after choosing to stay in the town, remains the only Loser who doesn't completely succumb under the clown's influence.

Hanlon Household's Distinctive Resilience

In episode 4 of Welcome to Derry, Leroy at last grows more aware of the paranormal entities surrounding the community, particularly when It starts haunting his child, Will, during their fishing trip. The Hanlon family comprises some of the few grown-ups who are aware that something is amiss with the town, notably the father, who was revealed to be receptive to psychic abilities when he was able to detect a fellow psychic's use of it in the third episode. Subsequently, he spots one of Pennywise's signature balloons outside his house. This gift, coupled with his failure to experience terror, along with the base of his family, may be why he's capable of perceiving Pennywise's hauntings. But what if that psychic sensitivity is hereditary, and a key factor Mike is among the few adults in the town who didn't lose themselves to the town's malevolence?

Will is part of the group of kids at his educational institution being terrorized by the clown. His classmates hail from dysfunctional families, with caregivers who refuse to accept they're being targeted. The reason Will is being haunted is due to the viciousness of the town, paired with his likely receptiveness to shine, which renders him vulnerable. The Hanlons are fundamentally outsiders in the town during the early sixties, which lends itself towards the family sensing something is off about the locality from the beginning. They also have a good foundation that isn't fractured, in contrast to the folks who originate in the town, with bonds that have deteriorated within.

Backstory Connections

Drawing from the It novel, we understand the juvenile Will will find himself at the Black Spot, where Hallorann will save him from a fire that the town bigots of Derry will ignite. In the 2017 movie, we observe that Will has a boy named Mike and that the father eventually perishes in a configration, with Leroy outliving his own child and taking his grandson in. The official story in the motion picture is that the parents were on drugs, but now that we see Will in the series, that's difficult to accept. Perhaps the timid youth, once he grew up, turned to drink to rid himself of the torments, or perhaps the rotten environment affected him initially, with the hate group eventually completing the task it began long before. Be it via the terror of Pennywise or via the malice of the community, seeded by It, It in the end achieves the last laugh on him.

Leroy's Transformation

These occurrences would clarify how the elder Hanlon transforms so drastically from what we witness in It: Chapter 1 and Welcome to Derry. In his older age, Leroy seems resentful and much stricter with his parenting. Because he outlived his own offspring, it's comprehensible to observe such a profound shift. Nonetheless, his statements carry more weight now that we know he's witnessed Pennywise's hauntings and the effects they wrought upon his child. In the initial sequence of the movie, we see the boy pause to use a bolt gun on a sheep at Leroy's farm. His grandfather chastises him for delaying and offers an metaphor that results in a kill-or-be-killed situation.

“There are two places you can be in this world. You can be in the open like us, or you can be in there,” he says as he points to the creature. “You waste time indecisive, and another is going to decide for you. But you won't know it until you experience that bolt between your eyes.”

In hindsight, this could represent a bit 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 was unable to avoid the repellent allure of the town.