HBO’s long-teased prequel series IT: Welcome to Derry arrived in late October as an unapologetically adult expansion of Stephen King’s mythic town — and it comes with clear viewer warnings.
The first episode premiered October 26 on HBO (weekly episodes to follow), and early reviews and parental guides flag the show as intense, violent, and built for mature audiences rather than kids — think TV-MA territory, graphic moments, and heavy psychological themes.
Below we unpack the facts parents and guardians care about first, then go deeper: what appears on screen, how the series treats children and trauma, episode guidance for the opening installment, and what parents should expect across Season 1.
IT: Welcome to Derry Parents Guide
- Age Rating: IT: Welcome to Derry is being widely indexed and reported as intended for mature viewers (TV-MA / comparable regional ratings) because of graphic violence, strong language, and mature sexual themes.
- What worries reviewers and parents most: severe violent imagery and frightening scenes — including child endangerment, gore and jump/horror shocks — plus adult language and some sexual content.
- Where/when to watch: premiered Oct. 26, 2025, on HBO with weekly episodes; streaming availability tied to HBO platforms.
IT: Welcome to Derry is made for adults and older teens with strong stomachs — it’s not a family show or something to watch with younger children.
What’s actually on screen
The show digs into Derry’s history in 1962 and centres on families who move to town just as a child vanishes. That disappearance sets off a chain of dark events, many of them explicit or implied in graphic ways: bloody violence, child-targeted menace, and psychological terror. The series leans into Stephen King’s novel material about cyclical evil and how a small town hides monstrous facts beneath normal life.
Specific content types called out by reviewers and parents’ resources include:
- Graphic / bloody violence and scenes of injury or death (rated severe in guides).
- Frightening and intense sequences designed to shock (both jump scares and slow-burn dread)
- Moderate profanity and adult language, plus brief depictions of alcohol and tobacco use.
- Mature themes: child trauma, abduction, grief, and the community’s complicity — material that’s emotionally heavy for younger viewers.
Episode guidance — Season 1 (what parents need to know, episode by episode, where possible)
Season 1 of IT: Welcome to Derry is structured as an eight-episode arc set in 1962, with the showrunners and Andy Muschietti directing key episodes. The premiere runtime clocks around the mid-50s (≈54 minutes).
Episode 1 — what to expect:
- Synopsis: A family moves to Derry; a local boy disappears; strange things begin to creep through the town. The pilot establishes mood, location, core characters, and Pennywise’s presence.
- Content warnings for this episode: scenes of child endangerment, unsettling imagery and body-harm suggestions, and at least some loud, frightening sequences. Visual gore is present but often intercut with suggestive framing rather than prolonged explicitness. Parents’ and review guides mark the episode as intense enough to upset younger viewers.
- Parental action: if you’re sensitive about showing your teen frightening images of threatened children or graphic violence, consider previewing the episode first. If you watch with an older teen, be prepared to pause for context and discussion.
Episodes 2–8 — what to expect:
Because the season is an origin story, subsequent episodes continue to deepen the town’s violent history, show more supernatural encounters, and explore adult secrets that touch kids’ lives. Expect increasing psychological dread, flashbacks, or period details that underline Derry’s patterns of violence, and more direct confrontation with Pennywise as the season progresses. Early critical notes say the series does not hold back on dark imagery and sometimes elevates gore relative to the recent feature films.
Viewer Suitability: Is IT: Welcome to Derry Right for Your Teen?
- Most appropriate: Adults and older teens (roughly 16–17+), especially viewers who are already comfortable with intense horror and mature themes.
- Use caution: Younger teens (13–15) only with a parent who has previewed the show and can contextualize themes; the emotional weight and violent imagery may be upsetting.
- Not appropriate: Children under 13, and many sensitive or anxious viewers regardless of age. The show contains child endangerment themes central to its plot that many find disturbing.
How to decide — quick checklist for parents before pressing play
- Have you previewed an episode? If not, screening Episode 1 yourself is the safest way to judge.
- Does your teen handle violent media well? If they avoid violent video games or have anxiety after scary films, this isn’t a safe bet.
- Can you discuss trauma and difference between horror and reality? If yes, watching together and pausing to explain may help digest the show’s themes.
- Any history of trauma in the household? If so, avoid the series — it contains material that can trigger past experiences.
Meaningful Discussion Prompts for Teens After Watching
- Why does Derry repeat its violence — what does the town ‘hide’?
- How does the show treat fear differently when it happens to kids vs. adults?
- What’s the difference between horror for scares and horror that tries to explore real trauma?
These help shift post-viewing talk away from ‘scare bragging’ and toward emotional processing.
IT: Welcome to Derry Reviews & early critical reaction
Critics describe the series as an expansion of the films’ atmosphere with a darker, more methodical approach to terror — and that means it’s not light horror. Rotten Tomatoes’ editorial roundups and early reviews focus on the show’s hardcore horror elements and say it’s likely to satisfy aficionados of the King mythos while being too intense for family viewing.
Editor’s Verdict
IT: Welcome to Derry arrives as prestige horror: carefully made, historically textured, and explicitly meant for a mature audience. That makes it a legitimate cinematic event for adults and older teens who enjoy deeply unnerving storytelling — but it also means parents should treat this show like any other mature-rated, high-impact program: preview, consider your child’s emotional maturity, and don’t be afraid to skip or defer.
For households with younger kids, the right call is straightforward: wait until they’re clearly older and better able to separate fiction from traumatic imagery. Official Website: HBOMax