Welcome to Derry: It prequel has transformed Port Hope into Derry again

The Max series Welcome to Derry, which will serve as a prequel to Warner Bros’ two-part adaptation of the classic Stephen King novel It (pick up a copy HERE), is now a couple weeks into production, with It and It: Chapter Two director Andy Muschietti on board to direct multiple episodes of the show, including the first episode. Now fans have been able confirm that the show is going to be filmed in Port Hope, Ontario, just like the two movies were – and they have pictures to prove it! Port Hope has once again been transformed into Derry, Maine, and images of the transformation can be seen in the Twitter embeds at the bottom of this article. (With thanks to reader Trevor for pointing these out to us.)

Brad Caleb Kane (Tokyo Vice) and Jason Fuchs (Wonder Woman), who was a co-producer on It: Chapter Two, are the showrunners on Welcome to Derry. The show is being executive produced by Andy Muschietti and Barbara Muschietti, the sibling director/producer duo that was behind the two It movies, through their production company Double Dream. Kane and Fuchs are also executive producing, as are Shelley Meals, Roy Lee, and Dan Lin. The series is produced by HBO Max and Warner Bros. Television.

Fuchs has written the script for the first episode, working from a story he crafted with the Muschiettis.

The cast of Welcome to Derry includes Taylour Paige (Zola), Jovan Adepo (Watchmen), Chris Chalk (Perry Mason), James Remar (Dexter), Madeleine Stowe (Revenge), and Stephen Rider (Daredevil). Details on their characters have not been revealed.

While we’re probably going to be seeing the evil Pennywise the Clown on the show at some point, Bill Skarsgard (who played Pennywise in Muschietti’s movies) has said that he is not currently involved with Welcome to Derry.

Stephen King had this to say about the series: “I’m excited that the story of Derry, Maine’s most haunted city, is continuing, and I’m glad Andy Muschietti is going to be overseeing the frightening festivities, along with a brain trust including his talented sister, Barbara. Red balloons all around!“ The Muschiettis added, “As teenagers, we took turns reading chapters of Stephen King’s It until the thick paperback fell to pieces. It is an epic story that contains multitudes, far beyond what we could explore in our It movies. We can’t wait to share the depths of Steve’s novel, in all its heart, humor, humanity, and horror.“

Are you interested in Welcome to Derry? Are you glad the Muschiettis have returned to Port Hope? Share your thoughts on this one by leaving a comment below.