IT: Welcome to Derry Episode 5 Twist Was Originally for IT Chapter Two

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Be warned, this contains spoilers for episode 5 of IT: Welcome to Derry. A major twist involving Pennywise in episode 5 of IT: Welcome to Derry was initially planned for a different purpose: to eliminate a member of the Losers Club in IT Chapter Two. The episode also brings back Matty Clements (played by Miles Ekhardt), who viewers previously believed had died in the first episode.

In episode 5, Matty says he got away from It, and then suggests that Phil Malkin might still be alive hiding in the sewers. The kids from Welcome to Derry go down into the sewers to try and rescue him. While there, they discover that Matty has been Pennywise the Dancing Clown in disguise the whole time, revealing that the evil entity was pretending to be Matty throughout the episode.

In a recent interview with Decider, Jason Fuchs, co-creator and showrunner, shared that they almost killed off Mike Hanlon in IT Chapter Two with a shocking twist. He explained that an earlier script had the Losers Club finding Mike’s body in the sewers, revealing that the entity ‘It’ had been disguised as him the whole time. You can read more of what Fuchs said below.

While working on ‘IT Chapter Two,’ we had a version of the script where Mike Hanlon led the adult Losers into the sewers, to what was essentially It’s lair. There, they discovered Mike’s body, revealing that the Mike they’d been with throughout the movie was actually a creation of It itself.

Ultimately, Fuchs, along with Andy and Barbara Muschietti, abandoned the idea because Mike lives in the original story, and altering that felt like too much of a departure from Stephen King’s book. While working on Welcome to Derry, they then found that the Pennywise reveal in episode 5 offered a great opportunity to revisit the concept.

Initially, we felt the show was straying too far from the source material and wanted to stay truer to the original story. We ended up abandoning that direction. Later, as we discussed the overall arc of the series, particularly Episode 5, we realized a different approach could really work. Specifically, having Matty as a guide within that context felt like a strong and timely idea.

Fuchs explained that the Welcome to Derry series gives them more room for creative risks compared to IT Chapter Two. Because the series is based on shorter sections of the original novel, they aren’t as tied to specific plot points. This allows them to explore new ideas and storylines, like the surprising twist involving Matty and Pennywise.

As a movie fan, I think what’s really exciting about this adaptation is the freedom we have to experiment. Because it’s a new take on the story, we can take chances and go in directions the films never could. We’re using the source material as a jumping-off point, but then building on it, inventing new scenes and ideas. It felt like a long time coming, and honestly, seeing it all come together was incredibly cool.

Changing the story to kill off Mike in IT Chapter Two and have the villain, It, use his form to torment the Losers Club would have been a significant departure from Stephen King’s book, and likely would have upset many fans. Though the Welcome to Derry series gives this fate to a different character, Matty, the scene still features a connection to Mike: young Will Hanlon, who later becomes Mike’s father, witnesses the horrifying event.

With the series Welcome to Derry still unfolding, the show has opportunities to explore ideas from Stephen King’s IT and IT Chapter Two that haven’t been used before, as long as those ideas fit naturally into the prequel’s storyline. While we already know how some things turn out due to the established story, as showrunner Fuchs suggests, there’s still plenty of room for surprises and experimentation in future episodes.

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2025-11-25 06:18