MOVIE NEWS – One of 2025’s most anticipated shows has finally landed an official release window. The prequel series to Stephen King’s It universe, It: Welcome to Derry, will debut this Halloween season. The HBO Max show is set to premiere in October 2025 (no exact day yet), and the announcement arrived alongside a haunting poster that’s sure to fuel the hype for King fans everywhere.

Loyal Stephen King viewers will soon “go back to where it all began,” as the HBO original series prepares to hit the newly rebranded streaming platform (formerly HBO Go, now HBO Max—let’s hope it sticks this time). Season one of It: Welcome to Derry will feature nine episodes and is set in 1962, placing it about 27 years before the events of the 2017 film adaptation. The news was made official via HBO Max’s X account, with a post that set the internet abuzz.

According to Bloody Disgusting, horror fans lucky enough to be at San Diego Comic Con this July will get the first peek at the series. On July 26 at 9:15pm in Room 6DE of the San Diego Convention Center, creators and producers Andy and Barbara Muschietti will unveil footage from the first episode. Attendees will be treated to free ice cream, and anyone roaming the event can expect a surprise—creepy clowns hired by the marketing team will wander the halls, interacting with Comic Con guests.

Andy Muschietti, director of both It films, returns to helm several episodes. The showrunners are Jason Fuchs and Brad Caleb Kane (who also co-created the Friday the 13th: Crystal Lake prequel series). The cast includes Bill Skarsgård, who reprises his role as Pennywise, along with Jovan Adepo, Taylour Paige, James Remar, Chris Chalk, Madeleine Stowe, Stephen Rider, and more.

All roads lead to Derry. First stop: #SDCC.#ITWelcomeToDerry is coming this October to HBO Max. pic.twitter.com/Kzl4TaXR3k

— Actually HBO Max (@StreamOnMax) July 11, 2025

‘It: Welcome to Derry’ – Hoping for a Three-Season Arc

Plans for more seasons are already underway if the first is a hit. Muschietti previously hinted that there’s a roadmap for both a second and third season, set in 1935 and 1908 respectively. Whether these will be greenlit depends on the show’s reception among viewers and the decision-makers at HBO, but given the global success of It (one of horror’s biggest box office hits), It: Welcome to Derry seems poised for a worldwide following.

The series isn’t based on any specific Stephen King novel, but draws from the interludes in his 1986 book, where the character Mike Hanlon explores the origins and backstory of Pennywise. Expect the show to delve into Pennywise’s emergence as the terrifying, child-hunting clown that fans have dreaded for generations.

Source: Bloody Disgusting