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The clown's influence on the children of Welcome to Derry molds them throughout their adult lives, transforming them into the exact individuals who keep the community's pattern of animosity alive. The creature finds easy targets on children from fractured households — children who frequently grow up to repeat the identical behaviors as their parents. However, the Hanlon household stands apart as one of the few family unit that remains intact, which may explain why Mike Hanlon, even after electing to remain in the town, remains the only Loser who doesn't completely succumb under Pennywise's sway.

Hanlon Household's Distinctive Resilience

In episode 4 of the series, Leroy Hanlon at last grows more aware of the paranormal entities enveloping the community, especially when It begins tormenting his child, Will, during their angling excursion. The Hanlon clan consists of some of the few adults who are cognizant that something is amiss with the municipality, notably the father, who was shown to be sensitive to the Shining when he was capable of sensing a fellow psychic's employment of it in episode 3. Subsequently, he spots one of the clown's trademark balloons outside his house. This gift, coupled with his failure to experience terror, along with the base of his household, could be why he's able to see Pennywise's hauntings. However, consider if that psychic sensitivity is generational, and one of the reasons Mike Hanlon is one of the only adults in Derry who resisted succumbing to the town's malevolence?

Will is a member of the group of kids at his educational institution being tormented by the clown. All his school friends hail from broken homes, with parents who refuse to accept they're being targeted. The reason Will is being haunted is due to the cruelty of the town, combined with his potential sensitivity to shine, which makes him susceptible. The Hanlons are ultimately strangers in Derry during 1962, which lends itself towards the household feeling anomalies exist about the town from the onset. Additionally, they possess a solid base that isn't fractured, unlike the residents who come from the area, with bonds that have decayed internally.

Backstory Connections

Based on the original book, we know the young Will Hanlon will end up at the Black Spot, where the psychic will save him from a fire that the local KKK members of Derry will cause. In the recent film, we observe that he has a boy named Mike and that the father ultimately dies in a configration, with his father outliving his own son and adopting his grandchild. The public account in the film is that the parents were on drugs, but now that we see him in the series, that's difficult to accept. Maybe the shy youth, once he grew up, leaned into drink to free himself of the hauntings, or maybe the rotten environment affected him initially, with the hate group ultimately finishing the task it began long before. Be it via the terror of the entity or via the cruelty of the town, seeded by It, It in the end gets the last laugh on him.

The Father's Evolution

This chain of events would clarify how Leroy transforms so drastically from what we see in It: Chapter 1 and the prequel. In his older age, he seems bitter and much harsher with his discipline. Because he outlived his own offspring, it's comprehensible to see such a profound shift. However, his statements hold greater significance since we are aware he's witnessed Pennywise's hauntings and the impacts they had on his child. In the initial sequence of It, we observe Mike hesitate to use a stunning device on a sheep at Leroy's farm. His grandfather reprimands him for hesitating and provides an metaphor that leads to a kill-or-be-killed scenario.

“You have two options you can be in this world. You can be in the open like we are, or you can be trapped inside,” he says as he gestures to the sheep. “You waste time indecisive, and someone is going to decide for you. But you will be unaware it until you feel that bolt in your head.”

Looking back, this could represent a piece of prediction, 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 sickening allure of Derry.