{"id":14268,"date":"2025-11-25T03:32:33","date_gmt":"2025-11-24T19:32:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=14268"},"modified":"2025-11-25T03:32:33","modified_gmt":"2025-11-24T19:32:33","slug":"it-welcome-to-derry-how-the-shining-and-doctor-sleep-set-up-the-latest-twist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=14268","title":{"rendered":"IT: Welcome to Derry &#8211; How The Shining and Doctor Sleep Set up the Latest Twist"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"\">\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\"><strong>This article contains spoilers for <\/strong><strong>IT: Welcome to Derry<\/strong><strong> Episode 5 and Doctor Sleep. <\/strong><\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">The latest episode of HBO Max\u2019s IT: Welcome to Derry revealed more about Dick Hallorann\u2019s past, yet for fans of Stephen King\u2019s sequel to The Shining, 2013\u2019s Doctor Sleep, and <u>Mike Flanagan\u2019s 2019 movie adaptation<\/u> of that book, what we saw was thrillingly familiar. The episode presented a skewed, IT-fueled version of information King had previously introduced about a special skill set available to some who possess the shining. <\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Dick Hallorann was first introduced in King\u2019s novel The Shining in 1977 and <u>Stanley Kubrick\u2019s 1980 film version<\/u> as the infamous Overlook Hotel\u2019s head cook. More importantly, he shared the same psychic abilities as young Danny Torrance, helping Danny to understand more about how his powers work and the \u201cshining\u201d name he used for them. Hallorann explained that when he was a child, he and his own grandmother were able to psychically communicate thanks to both of them sharing this trait. <\/p>\n<section class=\"box-wrapper jsx-2673806401\">\n<aside class=\"card jsx-1339469126 jsx-1178573261 box jsx-2627838217\" data-cy=\"aside\">\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\"><strong>More: <\/strong><strong>IT: Welcome to Derry Episode 5 Review<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/aside>\n<\/section>\n<h2 data-cy=\"title2\" class=\"title2 jsx-1903782357 jsx-3735650234\"><strong>Dick Hallorann\u2019s Bogus Journey<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Stephen King has always had most of his books take place in a shared universe, and Hallorann was included briefly in King\u2019s IT in 1986; he appeared in one of that book\u2019s flashback interludes, explaining what happened to Derry\u2019s Black Spot nightclub. In Welcome to Derry, we\u2019ve been following a younger Dick (Chris Chalk) who\u2019s an airman stationed in Derry in 1962. In this week\u2019s episode, Dick got separated from his troop while on a mission into the Derry sewers. After being pulled into the water, Dick surfaces in his own childhood bathroom, where he and his grandmother are terrorized by his grandfather, who bursts into the room carrying a locked box. <\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Dick is horrified that his grandfather has found this box, which his grandfather in turn demands to be opened. Communicating psychically, his grandmother warns him, \u201cYou know what\u2019s in there boy. Don\u2019t let him open it!\u201d But as it turns out, not so dear-old Grandpa is able to open the box himself, his face contorting into a Pennywise-esque grin as Dick screams at whatever is being unleashed. <\/p>\n<p><output class=\"box-wrapper jsx-2673806401\" data-cy=\"article-slideshow\"><button type=\"button\" style=\"display:none\" class=\"jsx-2228525885\"\/><\/p>\n<div data-cy=\"slideshow-view-trigger\">\n<div data-cy=\"slideshow-preview\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 slideshow-preview\">\n<h3 class=\"title5 jsx-62124236 jsx-1085005187\" data-cy=\"slideshow-preview-title\">Doctor Sleep Easter Eggs and References<\/h3>\n<div data-cy=\"slideshow-images-container\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 images-container\"><button type=\"button\" data-cy=\"hero-image\" aria-label=\"Open Slideshow\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 hero-image\"><img alt=\"\" aria-hidden=\"true\" decoding=\"async\" role=\"presentation\" class=\"progressive-image jsx-2021719738 image aspect-ratio aspect-ratio-16-9 jsx-2605834259 jsx-2338608387 hover-opacity\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"\/><span class=\"button-text jsx-729543028 button button--primary jsx-3381835873 jsx-4266531355 row-pagination-button next contained centered round large\" data-cy=\"paginate next\" title=\"Open Slideshow\"><span class=\"ign-icon right-chevron jsx-2750866048 jsx-2919720488\" role=\"presentation\" aria-hidden=\"true\" data-cy=\"right-chevron\" style=\"mask:url(https:\/\/kraken.ignimgs.com\/_next\/static\/media\/RightChevron.272be43c.svg) no-repeat center center \/ contain;background:currentColor\"\/><\/span><\/button><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/output><\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">This is an especially exciting scene if you\u2019re a fellow Doctor Sleep fan, because while most people associate Dick Hallorann with The Shining, he\u2019s also a part of that story\u2019s sequel, which is where all of this specific information about Dick\u2019s backstory comes from. Dick\u2019s role in both the Doctor Sleep book and film are very similar with a few deviations, most notably the biggie that Dick died at the end of The Shining movie but not in the book, so his appearances in the Doctor Sleep movie are entirely (friendly) ghost-based. But the crux of what occurs is the same, so for the purposes of clarity, I\u2019m going to mainly stick to the Doctor Sleep movie here, partially because that excellent film is the superior version of the story.<\/p>\n<h2 data-cy=\"title2\" class=\"title2 jsx-1903782357 jsx-3735650234\"><strong>A Lesson for Danny Torrance<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Very early in Doctor Sleep, Dick (played in this version by Carl Lumbly) appears to young Danny (Roger Dale Floyd) in events set not long after Jack Torrance tried to kill Danny and his mother, Wendy, at the Overlook in Colorado. Dick knows that Danny, despite living in Florida now, continues to be haunted by the ghost of Lorraine Massey, the rotting and naked bathtub ghost from the Overlook. He explains that the evil spirits from the Overlook are following Danny because those with the shining are something of a beacon for malevolent forces to feast upon.<\/p>\n<p><output class=\"box-wrapper jsx-2673806401\" data-cy=\"article-slideshow\"><button type=\"button\" style=\"display:none\" class=\"jsx-2228525885\"\/><\/p>\n<div data-cy=\"slideshow-view-trigger\">\n<div data-cy=\"slideshow-preview\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 slideshow-preview\">\n<h3 class=\"title5 jsx-62124236 jsx-1085005187\" data-cy=\"slideshow-preview-title\">Doctor Sleep vs. The Shining: Side-By-Side Comparison<\/h3>\n<div data-cy=\"slideshow-images-container\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 images-container\"><button type=\"button\" data-cy=\"hero-image\" aria-label=\"Open Slideshow\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 hero-image\"><img alt=\"Young Danny Torrance -  The Shining (L), Doctor Sleep (R)\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"progressive-image jsx-2021719738 image aspect-ratio aspect-ratio-16-9 jsx-2605834259 jsx-2338608387 hover-opacity\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"\/><span class=\"button-text jsx-729543028 button button--primary jsx-3381835873 jsx-4266531355 row-pagination-button next contained centered round large\" data-cy=\"paginate next\" title=\"Open Slideshow\"><span class=\"ign-icon right-chevron jsx-2750866048 jsx-2919720488\" role=\"presentation\" aria-hidden=\"true\" data-cy=\"right-chevron\" style=\"mask:url(https:\/\/kraken.ignimgs.com\/_next\/static\/media\/RightChevron.272be43c.svg) no-repeat center center \/ contain;background:currentColor\"\/><\/span><\/button><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/output><\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">As Dick puts it, \u201cThe darkest things are the hungriest and they\u2019ll eat what shines,\u201d and Danny shines particularly bright. Having come into contact with Danny at the Overlook, these things don\u2019t want to let him go. But Dick then informs Danny, \u201cWhat you can do is turn what they come for against them.\u201d <\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">He tells Danny about his horribly abusive grandfather, and how even after he died, \u201cHe kept on coming back.\u201d But, as Dick explains, his grandmother taught him a trick to combat this, and he presents Danny with a box. He tells Danny he wants him to study this box: \u201cYou\u2019re gonna build one just like it in your mind. One even more special. So next time that bitch comes around, you\u2019ll be ready.\u201d<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Danny takes this advice to heart, confronting Massey\u2019s ghost in his home and trapping her within the psychic box he\u2019s been able to manifest in his mind. And when Doctor Sleep then brings us forward in time to an adult Danny (now played by Ewan McGregor), we learn he continued to build box after box that he slowly but surely used to trap all of the Overlook ghosts as they came for him through the years, in what is almost his personal psychic version of the Ghostbusters\u2019 traps and containment unit. <\/p>\n<p><output class=\"box-wrapper jsx-2673806401\" data-cy=\"article-video\"\/><\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">These psychic boxes prove to be crucial to the story in Doctor Sleep\u2019s third act, as Danny confronts Rose the Hat (Rebecca Ferguson) back at the Overlook Hotel. Rose and her fellow members of the True Knot are also drawn to those with the shining, feeding on their energy like vampires. Danny comes to realize he might need to fight fire with fire, using what\u2019s inside the boxes against Rose, since \u2013 in her own way \u2013 she shines as well. Danny obviously knows that opening the boxes is incredibly dangerous, but he\u2019s in an extreme situation. Again, the specifics of this are different in the book, where the Overlook had burnt down already, but the basic ideas remain the same. <\/p>\n<h2 data-cy=\"title2\" class=\"title2 jsx-1903782357 jsx-3735650234\"><strong>What Else Did Dick Hallorann Have Trapped?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Going back to Welcome to Derry, the only thing we knew from Doctor Sleep that Dick had locked up inside his own psychic box was the spirit of his grandfather. And while this first appears to then be that very same grandfather appearing in front of him demanding he open the box, it\u2019s pretty clear this is actually IT, with \u201cGrandfather\u2019s\u201d face laughing and distorting like Pennywise the Clown (complete with his eyes going in different directions) when he opens the box. <\/p>\n<p><output class=\"box-wrapper jsx-2673806401\" data-cy=\"article-slideshow\"><button type=\"button\" style=\"display:none\" class=\"jsx-2228525885\"\/><\/p>\n<div data-cy=\"slideshow-view-trigger\">\n<div data-cy=\"slideshow-preview\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 slideshow-preview\">\n<h3 class=\"title5 jsx-62124236 jsx-1085005187\" data-cy=\"slideshow-preview-title\">The Best Stephen King Movies of All Time<\/h3>\n<div data-cy=\"slideshow-images-container\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 images-container\"><button type=\"button\" data-cy=\"hero-image\" aria-label=\"Open Slideshow\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 hero-image\"><img alt=\"With so many films to choose from, what are the best Stephen King adaptations? We've whittled this massive catalogue down to 13 films. From ghosts to psychics to... ghosts wanting to feed on psychics, these are truly the movies that not only captured King the best, but also became cinema classics in their own right.\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"progressive-image jsx-2021719738 image aspect-ratio aspect-ratio-16-9 jsx-2605834259 jsx-2338608387 hover-opacity\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"\/><span class=\"button-text jsx-729543028 button button--primary jsx-3381835873 jsx-4266531355 row-pagination-button next contained centered round large\" data-cy=\"paginate next\" title=\"Open Slideshow\"><span class=\"ign-icon right-chevron jsx-2750866048 jsx-2919720488\" role=\"presentation\" aria-hidden=\"true\" data-cy=\"right-chevron\" style=\"mask:url(https:\/\/kraken.ignimgs.com\/_next\/static\/media\/RightChevron.272be43c.svg) no-repeat center center \/ contain;background:currentColor\"\/><\/span><\/button><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/output><\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">This would indicate that the actual spirit of his awful grandfather is likely now free. But his grandmother warned \u201c<em>They\u2019re<\/em> gonna get you\u201d if the box was opened, which implies Grandpa wasn\u2019t alone in there, and Dick had his own other encounters with additional spirits or dark forces that he locked up. Perhaps there aren\u2019t as many as Danny had, thanks to the Overlook, but there are probably enough to be very bad news. And yeah, Dick didn\u2019t mention this to Danny, but it also doesn\u2019t feel like too much of a leap. <\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">In the episode\u2019s final scene, Dick wanders back out of the sewer, only to see his crewmate Pauly (Rudy Mancuso) standing before him. Pauly was shot and seemingly killed earlier in the episode, but now he looks zombie-like, stumbling about with dead eyes. We then cut back to the box in Dick\u2019s mind, still open, insinuating IT may have just unleashed a whole other threat within Derry\u2026 perhaps tied to what\u2019s happened to Pauly!?<\/p>\n<p><output class=\"box-wrapper jsx-2673806401\" data-cy=\"article-video\"\/><\/p>\n<h2 data-cy=\"title2\" class=\"title2 jsx-1903782357 jsx-3735650234\"><strong>In Conclusion, Doctor Sleep Rules<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">This is all a really exciting inclusion for Welcome to Derry, further connecting King\u2019s ideas about how the shining works and how those with these abilities can hone them \u2013 which were deepened in major ways in Doctor Sleep \u2013 to this series. Beyond that, it\u2019s also cool to see Doctor Sleep and the concepts it introduced have such significance here. It might not have the name value or popularity of The Shining, but it was a good book that was turned into a <u>great movie<\/u>. Mike Flanagan pulled off the magic trick of adapting King\u2019s book <em>and<\/em> making a proper sequel to Stanley Kubrick\u2019s movie \u2013 which <u>King famously hated<\/u> despite its acclaimed status \u2013 that delivered on all fronts and dealt with all the implicit contradictions, yet was simultaneously a compelling, creepy, and emotional story in its own right. Among constant Stephen King adaptations across TV and film, it stands out as an especially strong and impactful one. <\/p>\n<div class=\"display-title jsx-959792410 jsx-2659527929 quote-container\" data-cy=\"quoteBox\">This is a really exciting inclusion, further connecting King\u2019s ideas about how the shining works to this series.<\/div>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Chris Chalk and the producers of Welcome to Derry have acknowledged how the younger Dick Hallorann we\u2019re seeing on the show is a much colder person than the warm mentor he would become to Danny Torrance in The Shining and Doctor Sleep. But this new turn of events is likely setting up how and why Dick will change his perspective. There\u2019s nothing like being manipulated by an ancient evil being that feeds on children into freeing other dark spirits within your head to make you take stock of your life and inspire you to be a force for good, is there? <\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">We\u2019ll see what happens in this earlier timeline as IT: Welcome to Derry heads into the final three episodes of its first season. In the meantime, you should check out Doctor Sleep if you haven\u2019t!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ign.com\/articles\/it-welcome-to-derry-how-the-shining-and-doctor-sleep-set-up-the-latest-twist\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read Full Article At Source <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This article contains spoilers for IT: Welcome to Derry Episode 5 and Doctor Sleep. The latest episode of HBO Max\u2019s IT: Welcome to Derry revealed&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1864,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[6881,1352,391,1814,10665,1026,3904],"class_list":["post-14268","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tech-gadgets-reviews","tag-derry","tag-doctor","tag-latest","tag-set","tag-shining","tag-sleep","tag-twist","wpcat-32-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14268","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=14268"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14268\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=14268"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=14268"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=14268"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}