What’s in the Box in Welcome to Derry? Pennywise Finally Connects IT to Doctor Sleep
The following contains spoilers for Welcome to Derry Season 1, Episode 5, “Neibolt Street,” which premieres on November 23 on HBO.
In the book, Mike Hanlon’s father, William, talks about the young Army mess cook when telling him about the infamous fire at The Black Spot. While Doctor Sleep expanded Hallorann’s backstory, it is now being explored further in the Pennywise prequel series. Welcome to Derry Episode 5 features a major shake-up for Hallorann that will have big repercussions for him going forward.
What Is the Significance of Dick Hallorann’s Box?
In The Shining, Dick Hallorann meets young Danny Torrance and his parents, Jack and Wendy, at the Overlook Hotel. He discovers that, like him, Danny has the ability to shine, and the boy’s powers are even stronger than Hallorann’s. While the spirits haunting the Overlook Hotel are like pictures to Hallorann, they are much more real and physical to Danny. As Hallorann explained in the Doctor Sleep film adaptation, “The darkest things are the hungriest, and they’ll eat what shines.”
He hands Danny his metal lockbox and tells him he’ll build his own in his mind. This box will hold the darkest things Danny will ever face, locked away forever and unable to haunt him.
Dick Hallorann’s box serves the same purpose: imprisoning his grandfather’s vile ghost along with any other dark spirits he’s encountered over the years. If that box is opened, there is no doubt Hallorann would be a very tormented and haunted man, which is likely why It has been on a mission to free what’s inside.
Pennywise Hits Back at Dick Hallorann in Welcome to Derry Episode 5
In Welcome to Derry Episode 3, Major Leroy Hanlon and Captain Pauly Russo flew a military helicopter over the woods as Hallorann used an object as a psychic guide to locate It. After establishing a mental connection with the site, Hallorann tapped into his shining ability to intrude on Pennywise in his own home. This let It know that Hallorann is a serious threat.
In Episode 4, Hallorann learned how to access the lair after forcibly entering Taniel’s mind. With a location confirmed, Hallorann, Leroy, Pauly, and other soldiers enter the sewer tunnels, only for Hallorann to step into shallow water and disappear into an abyss. He wakes up scared in his grandparents’ bathroom as his grandfather storms in.
He demands that Hallorann open the lockbox, but he refuses. His grandmother uses her shine to warn him not to open it. After tense moments, his grandfather shoots his grandmother in the leg and begins to morph into Pennywise. After more taunting, the box finally opens, and Hallorann is sent into hysterics. At the end of the episode, once he finally escapes the sewer tunnel, he visualizes his box in his mind, sitting wide open in the bathroom. He knows there will be hell to pay.
Although It is an ancient, god-like cosmic entity, there are still things that can hurt it and things it fears. This likely includes Hallorann’s shining ability. He was able to intrude on Pennywise, without warning, which is something It wouldn’t be used to. Hallorann’s determination is another aspect that puts a target on his back. Hunting Pennywise is the most dangerous thing he will ever do.
In defense, while also serving as a way to raise his fear level significantly, It has exploited Hallorann’s biggest vulnerability. Whatever was locked in the box will do its best to “eat what shines.”
It: Welcome to Derry airs every Sunday on HBO, leading up to the season finale on December 14.
