[Editor’s note: The following contains spoilers for IT: Welcome to Derry.]

Summary

Co-Stars Blake Cameron James and Arian S. Cartaya were terrified by Bill Skarsgård in character as Pennywise.

Will’s relationship with his military father is rocky, with haunting moments that deepen the tension.

The Losers Club bond grew among the actors while the character dynamics shift as Pennywise escalates the fear.

Developed for television by filmmakers Andy Muschietti and Barbara Muschietti and co-showrunner Jason Fuchs, the HBO series IT: Welcome to Derry serves as a prequel to IT and IT Chapter Two as it delves deeper into the origins of the entity that permeates through the quaint town of Derry. Set in 1962, no one is safe from the cycle of fear and terror as it infects and forces everyone in its path to question whether what they’re seeing is real or if it’s the sinister shape-shifter. Having come face-to-face with Pennywise the Dancing Clown in the sewers hasn’t deterred Lilly (Clara Stack) from wanting to use the dagger that was formed to kill the entity, but the rest of the new group of Losers – Will (Blake Cameron James), Rich (Arian S. Cartaya), Ronnie (Amanda Christine), and Marge (Matilda Lawler) – aren’t so keen on that idea. As kids and adults alike are forced to face their traumas, the entity isn’t the only evil lurking in Derry. As the new kid in town, Will finds himself in Derry when his Air Force Major father Leroy Hanlon (Jovan Adepo) and mother Charlotte (Taylour Paige) move to Maine under the orders of General Shaw (James Remar). At school, he becomes friends with Rich and their duo quickly becomes a group of five, as they share experiences with the entity with Lilly, Ronnie, and Marge. During this interview with Collider, co-stars Cartaya and James discussed what scares them the most when it comes to Welcome to Derry, how terrifying it is to work with Bill Skarsgård when he’s embodying Pennywise, Will’s relationship with his parents, having to wear a butt pad to pull off a stunt, why Cartaya identifies with Rich, the Losers Club dynamic, the scary moment when Will and Leroy are fishing together, and how they feel about the remainder of the season.

Arian S. Cartaya and Blake Cameron James Were Really Scared of Pennywise in ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’

“Him, just being himself, is the scariest thing to me.”

Bill Skarsgard as Pennywise in close-up in Episode 6 of IT: Welcome to DerryImage via HBO

Collider: There are a lot of scary moments in this series, but everybody has their own thing that scares them that doesn’t necessarily scare everybody else. What is it about Welcome to Derry that most scares each of you? ARIAN S. CARTAYA: For me, it was the scene in the cemetery where my uncle, as a ghost, flies over my head while riding my bike. My uncle had a big influence on my life back in Cuba and just seeing him flying over my head was a little weird, so I was scared in that moment. I was in shock. But also, in real life, Pennywise absolutely scared the crap out of me. BLAKE CAMERON JAMES: Pennywise has been my biggest fear, forever. Him, just being himself, is the scariest thing to me. What was it like the first time you saw Bill Skarsgård on set as Pennywise? It’s one thing to know what he’s going to look like, but it’s another thing to actually see him in person. JAMES: It’s completely different because he’s like six foot five, or whatever. He’s tall and you’re just looking up at him like, “You’re Pennywise,” in full makeup and everything. It was terrifying. It was horrifying. CARTAYA: That scene when he lunged towards us in the sewers, I genuinely think I crapped my pants on that one.

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Blake, we first meet your character, Will Hanlon, with his parents when he comes to Derry because of his father being called to the military base. How would you describe his relationship with his parents? JAMES: Good question. With Will and his father, especially, their relationship is a little bit rocky because Will feels like he doesn’t really know him and he doesn’t really see him. His dad wants him to be something that he’s not. Charlotte says something like, “You don’t want him to use another baseball as a paperweight,” because that’s not what Will. He likes books. He’s a smart guy. He likes telescopes. What was that relationship like to find with your TV parents? JAMES: They were so great. Mr. Jovan [Adepo] is the best. He’s been a mentor to me. He’s taught me so many things and helped me out with so much stuff that I’ll use in the future. And Miss Taylour [Paige] is incredible as well. I applaud them. They made the experience way better and much easier. Your character is also the new kid in school, and he very quickly learns his place there when he walks into his first class and the kid pulls the chair away from him. What was it like to shoot that moment when he falls to the ground? How many times did you have to keep doing that? JAMES: Until this moment, I forgot how it was filming that. I had to fall on my butt so many times. They gave me a butt pad. CARTAYA: He had to wear a butt pad. JAMES: So, it was a little bit better, but still crazy. And Mr. Andy [Muschietti] likes takes, so you do it for a bit of time. You do it over and over again. But it was still great. It came out looking pretty good as well.

Blake Cameron James and Arian S. Cartaya Hung Out With Their Co-Stars to Build Chemistry in ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’

“We had very good chemistry between the four of us, and eventually the five.”

You guys, as a foursome with Lilly and Ronnie, all start to become friends, and eventually with Marge also. What was it like for you guys to all find your own little team, as actors and as characters, and to do those group scenes together? CARTAYA: We had very good chemistry between the four of us, and eventually the five. We would just hang out as much as we possibly could. Before emotional scenes or very fun scenes, we would have meetings with Mr. Ben, our acting coach. We would have fun. We studied the scripts, but wanted to have as much fun as possible. We liked to play games, and all that stuff. JAMES: Mr. Ben helped us build our chemistry and things of that nature definitely helped the outcome with how it looks on camera. Arian, how did you see your character before we meet him? It feels like Rich is probably someone who has never really fit in anywhere, and now he’s got this new kid who doesn’t know him that he can be friends with. Who was Rich before we meet him? CARTAYA: I feel like Rich is just this loving, kind kid in middle school. He wants to fit in and he wants to make friends, but early on, he got bullied a lot for not knowing English because he came from Cuba when he was little. I feel like that plays a big role in not having too many friends at school and being picked on. And then, he meets Will and all the other Losers, and he just feels welcomed and like he can actually talk to people.

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Blake, in episode four, Will goes fishing with his father and is pulled into the water and sees this other version of his father. How was that to shoot? Were you really in and under the water? JAMES: That was very, very crazy. It was so cold. I remember it rained that day as well. We were so into the scene. It was looking so good. I’m very happy with how it came out. We had to keep doing the pull in the water, over and over again, just to get it perfect. One of my favorite shots is when the camera is underneath the water and I’m screaming. That shot is fire. I never knew how the CGI for Leroy would look like underneath with his face, so it was cool to see that. It was a crazy experience.

The Dynamic Among the Losers Club Is Shifting in ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’

“The atmosphere … shifts a little bit.”

Clara Stack, Amanda Christine, Matilda Lawler and the Losers Club at the sewers in IT: Welcome to DerryImage via HBO

Things get scarier and scarier for this group of kids as they interact more directly with this entity. How scary will things get in the last couple of episodes? Without revealing any spoilers, how did you guys react to how the season ends? How did you feel about where it all ends? CARTAYA: Without saying too much, the atmosphere between the friend group definitely shifts a little bit after that Pennywise interaction. That’s all I’m going to say. JAMES: It makes sense. I didn’t really understand it before, but seeing how the whole story came together, without spoiling anything, it makes sense and I appreciate the ending.

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Release Date

October 26, 2025

Network

HBO

Franchise(s)

IT

IT: Welcome to Derry airs on HBO and is available to stream on HBO Max. Check out the trailer: