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The clown's influence on the children of the Derry series molds them long into adulthood, twisting them into the exact individuals who keep the town's pattern of hatred alive. The creature finds easy targets on kids from fractured homes — youngsters who frequently mature to repeat the same patterns as their guardians. But, the Hanlon family stands apart as one of the few households that remains intact, which may explain why Mike, even after choosing to stay in Derry, remains the only Loser who never fully falls under the clown's influence.

The Hanlon Family's Unique Resistance

In episode 4 of Welcome to Derry, Leroy Hanlon finally becomes increasingly conscious of the supernatural forces enveloping the community, particularly when It starts haunting his child, Will Hanlon, during their fishing trip. The Hanlon family consists of some of the few adults who are aware that something is amiss with the town, notably Leroy, who was shown to be receptive to psychic abilities when he was capable of sensing a fellow psychic's employment of it in the third episode. Subsequently, Leroy spots one of the clown's trademark balloons outside his residence. This gift, coupled with his inability to experience terror, along with the foundation of his household, could be why he's capable of perceiving the entity's manifestations. However, consider if that psychic sensitivity is hereditary, and a key factor Mike is among the few individuals in Derry who didn't lose themselves to its cruelty?

Will is part of the collective of children at his school being terrorized by Pennywise. His classmates hail from broken homes, with parents who refuse to accept they're being haunted. The reason he is being pursued is because of the viciousness of the community, combined with his likely receptiveness to shine, which renders him vulnerable. The Hanlons are ultimately strangers in the town during 1962, which contributes towards the family sensing something is off about the town from the onset. They also have a solid base that remains unbroken, in contrast to the residents who come from the town, with relationships that have decayed within.

Historical Context

Based on the It novel, we understand the young Will will find himself at the Black Spot, where the psychic will rescue him from a blaze that the town bigots of the community will cause. In the 2017 movie, we see that he has a boy named Mike and that the father eventually perishes in a fire, with Leroy outliving his own child and taking his grandson in. The public account in the film is that the parents were on substances, but given our current view of him in Welcome to Derry, that's hard to believe. Maybe the shy boy, once he became an adult, leaned into drink to free himself of the torments, or maybe the rotten environment got to him first, with the hate group ultimately completing the task it started long before. Be it via the fear of Pennywise or through the malice of the town, seeded by It, It in the end achieves the last laugh on Will.

Leroy's Transformation

These occurrences would explain how Leroy changes so drastically from what we see in It: Chapter 1 and the prequel. In his later years, Leroy appears resentful and much stricter with his parenting. Because he outlived his own offspring, it's understandable to observe such a profound shift. Nonetheless, his words carry more weight now that we know he's seen Pennywise's hauntings and the impacts they wrought upon his child. In the opening scene of the movie, we observe the boy pause to use a bolt gun on a animal at Leroy's farm. Leroy reprimands him for hesitating and offers an metaphor that leads to a survival-of-the-fittest scenario.

“You have two options you can be in this world. You can be out here like we are, or you can be in there,” he says as he points to the creature. “You waste time indecisive, and another is going to make that choice. Except you will be unaware it until you experience that bolt in your head.”

Looking back, this could represent a piece of foreshadowing, something he regrets not imparting to his own son. Maybe he desires he had done something in his youth, but for some reason, he was unable to avoid the sickening allure of Derry.