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'IT: Welcome to Derry' finally reveals where Pennywise came from — and the ultimate weapon he's most afraid of

Episode 4 of 'Welcome to Derry' uncovers Pennywise's ancient origins and a powerful weapon, setting the stage for a terrifying showdown in episode 5

'IT: Welcome to Derry' has officially crossed a threshold neither the 2017–2019 feature films nor the 1990 miniseries dared to step over. Four episodes into its debut season, the prequel series has done the unthinkable: it has shown Pennywise's arrival on Earth. The latest episode pulls the curtain back on the cosmic origins of It and offers the clearest depiction yet of the first Ritual of Chud attempt, long before the Losers' Club ever existed. Even without Bill Skarsgård's Pennywise stepping into frame, episode 4 unleashes two brutal attacks: one on Will Hanlon during a fishing trip with his father, and another on Marge Truman at school. 

Will's encounter, which leaves Major Leroy Hanlon terrified for his family's safety, mirrors the moment the military realizes they may be standing too close to the weapon they've been hunting. Meanwhile, Marge's horrific hallucination forces her to reevaluate where she belongs, pushing her back toward Lilly and the outsiders she once abandoned. A major focus of this episode was Dick Hallorann, a character beloved across Stephen King's universe thanks to 'The Shining' and 'Doctor Sleep'. While fans know him as the kindly cook with a powerful shine, 'Welcome to Derry' takes viewers back to Hallorann's youth.

Using his psychic ability, Hallorann is recruited by the U.S. military to locate It, with the belief that the entity could be weaponized to end the Cold War. Actor Chris Chalk brings a vulnerable side to Hallorann, portraying him decades before he ever meets Danny Torrance. Episode 3 showed him shaken after a psychic encounter with Pennywise, where he glimpsed his grandmother suspended in the deadlights. But episode 4 reveals that trauma hasn't scared him off. In fact, Hallorann becomes even more determined. When Rose’s nephew Taniel is detained by the Army, Hallorann is brought in to pry the truth from the boy’s mind, as per CBR. The result is one of the episode's most chilling scenes.

Rather than approaching Taniel with his usual compassion, Hallorann leans over him with a disturbingly calm smile, slipping into his thoughts without hesitation. Inside Taniel’s memories, Hallorann witnesses the ancient story of how Pennywise arrived on Earth. Taniel recounts how, millions of years before humans walked the land, a meteor carrying the "evil spirit" known as the Galloo shattered upon impact. When humans emerged, the entity fed on them, growing stronger with every cycle of terror. The Shokopiwah tribe, ancestors of Taniel and Rose, endured generations of attacks before discovering that fragments from the meteor could weaken the creature.

They buried the shards to cage it, avoiding the Western Wood where it lurked. Over time, settlers unknowingly restored Pennywise's strength. Determined to contain it again, the tribe planted thirteen shards across the woods. Those pillars, and their secret locations, are now what the military wants. Stephen King fans know the Ritual of Chud has undergone multiple interpretations across adaptations. In the novel, the ritual is a surreal psychic duel. 'IT: Chapter Two' reimagined it as a Shokopiwah ceremony involving physical totems, one that ultimately failed.

'Welcome to Derry' bridges those versions, introducing a tangible weapon Pennywise actually fears. With Taniel guiding Hallorann toward It's hiding place, the shard becomes the series' key weapon. Episode 5, "Neibolt Street", promises a major showdown that edges the prequel closer to King's classic mythos. As per IMDb, the next episode airs Sunday, November 23.