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Pennywise's influence on the children of the Derry series shapes them throughout their adult lives, transforming them into the very adults who keep the town's pattern of hatred ongoing. It preys most easily on children from broken households — children who often grow up to repeat the same patterns as their parents. But, the Hanlon household distinguishes itself as one of the few family unit that never splinters, which could clarify why Mike, even after choosing to stay in the town, persists as the sole member who never fully falls under the clown's influence.

The Hanlon Family's Distinctive Resilience

In episode 4 of Welcome to Derry, Leroy Hanlon at last grows increasingly conscious of the paranormal entities surrounding the neighborhood, especially when It begins tormenting his son, Will, during their fishing trip. The Hanlon clan consists of a small number of adults who are aware that things are not right with the town, notably the father, who was shown to be receptive to the Shining when he was capable of sensing Dick Hallorann's employment of it in the third episode. Later, Leroy sees one of Pennywise's signature inflated orbs outside his residence. This gift, coupled with his inability to experience terror, combined with the base of his household, may be why he's able to see the entity's manifestations. But what if that shining is generational, and one of the reasons Mike Hanlon is among the few adults in Derry who resisted succumbing to its cruelty?

The boy is a member of the group of children at his school being terrorized by Pennywise. His classmates come from broken homes, with caregivers who refuse to accept they're being targeted. The reason he is being haunted is due to the cruelty of the town, paired with his likely receptiveness to psychic abilities, which makes him susceptible. The Hanlons are ultimately outsiders in the town during 1962, which lends itself towards the household feeling anomalies exist about the town from the beginning. They also have a good foundation that remains unbroken, in contrast to the residents who come from the area, with bonds that have deteriorated within.

Backstory Connections

Based on the original book, we understand the juvenile Will will end up at the infamous nightclub, where Hallorann will rescue him from a blaze that the town bigots of Derry will cause. In the 2017 movie, we observe that Will has a boy named Mike and that Will ultimately dies in a configration, with his father surviving his own son and taking his grandson in. The official story in the motion picture is that the parents were on drugs, but given our current view of Will in Welcome to Derry, that's difficult to accept. Perhaps the shy youth, once he grew up, leaned into alcohol to rid himself of the torments, or maybe the rotten environment affected him initially, with the KKK ultimately completing the job it began long before. Be it via the terror of Pennywise or via the malice of the community, instigated by Pennywise, It in the end gets the final victory on him.

Leroy's Transformation

This chain of events would explain how Leroy transforms so radically from what we witness in the first film and Welcome to Derry. In his later years, Leroy seems resentful and much stricter with his parenting. Because he outlived his own offspring, it's comprehensible to observe such a profound shift. However, his words carry more weight since we are aware he's seen Pennywise's hauntings and the effects they had on his child. In the initial sequence of It, we see Mike pause to use a bolt gun on a animal at Leroy's farm. Leroy chastises him for hesitating and provides an analogy that leads to a kill-or-be-killed situation.

“You have two options you can be in this existence. You can be in the open like we are, or you can be in there,” he states as he points to the sheep. “You dawdle hemming and hawing, and someone is going to make that choice. Except you won't know it until you experience that projectile in your head.”

In hindsight, this could be a bit of foreshadowing, a lesson he wishes he had told his own son. Perhaps he wishes he had acted differently in his youth, but for some reason, he was unable to avoid the repellent attraction of Derry.