Stranger Things’ Forgotten Pennywise Connection in IT: Welcome to Derry

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After five seasons, it’s clear that the creators of Stranger Things drew heavily from the work of Stephen King. The show often feels like a classic King story from the late 70s and 80s, with echoes of novels like Firestarter, The Dead Zone, Carrie, and especially IT, influencing its characters and plot. As Stranger Things approaches its final season and continues to rack up impressive viewership numbers—making it Netflix’s most popular show—a new Stephen King adaptation is currently a hit on HBO Max, one of Netflix’s main competitors.

The HBO Max series has enjoyed a successful first season, earning an 80% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and becoming one of the platform’s most popular shows this year. It’s a spin-off of the 2017 and 2019 films, which tell the story of unsettling events in Derry before the Losers’ Club faced Pennywise – events also detailed in Stephen King’s 1986 novel. While fans were revisiting earlier seasons of Stranger Things in anticipation of the new season, a significant connection between the two shows might have been overlooked, even by devoted Stephen King readers.

Bob Newby Shares an Eerily Familiar Story to Will in Stranger Things 2

Despite appearing in only three seasons and it being eight years ago, Sean Astin’s character, Bob Newby, is still beloved by fans of Stranger Things. He was a genuinely good person, and many viewers felt it was unrealistic to expect a happy ending for him, given his kind nature, especially as he connected with Joyce Byers’ children, particularly Will.

Season 2 focuses on Will as he recovers from the traumatic events of the previous season. He struggles with flashbacks and PTSD, but finds support in Bob, who encourages him to confront his fears. During this time, Bob shares a captivating story from his own childhood.

Bob shared with Will that he had a frightening childhood experience with a circus clown named Baldo. Baldo tried to give him a balloon, but Bob refused. This led to years of nightmares. The nightmares only ended when Bob finally confronted the clown in a dream, fearlessly telling him to leave. Once he stood up to Baldo, the bad dreams and his fear disappeared.

This is remarkably similar to the way people try to fight or distract the creature. Earlier in the story, Bob reveals his parents were from Maine, suggesting he might have lived in Derry as a child during the 1950s – the same period when Pennywise was active, as shown in IT: Welcome to Derry.

Bob’s Story Isn’t the Only Connection to Stephen King’s IT

For the past seven years, fans have been buzzing with theories that Stranger Things and Stephen King’s IT exist in the same universe. However, the Duffer brothers, creators of the show, have dismissed these ideas, explaining that the connection was simply a nod to King’s work. They’ve said that IT, along with other stories, heavily inspired their creative process, and the references in Stranger Things are a reflection of that.

Matt Duffer recently told Vulture about the inspiration behind the scary clown story in the show. He said watching the 1990 mini-series of IT was a deeply unsettling experience for him as a child, being his first exposure to Stephen King. It genuinely frightened him and gave him nightmares for at least two weeks. He explained that the story was based on his own childhood fear, though he didn’t personally experience anything like it – he simply had terrifying nightmares.

Throughout Stranger Things, there are many nods to the work of Stephen King. For instance, Finn Wolfhard, who plays Mike Wheeler on the show, also starred as Richie Tozier in the It movies. In Season 3, Lucas cleverly uses Pennywise’s iconic red balloons to distract the Mind Flayer during a crucial battle.

The core appeal likely lies in the group of heroes – Mike, Will, Lucas, Dustin, and Eleven – and how they unite to overcome their fears and fight the evil threatening their town. While it’s enjoyable to see connections to another universe, it currently feels more like a loving tribute to classic stories.

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2025-12-18 05:06