HBO Max’s The Conjuring Series Is A Fantastic Follow-Up To New Stephen King Show
HBO Max’s horror slate is already getting a big boost this year with the debut of IT: Welcome to Derry, and the streamer’s latest confirmed series perfectly builds off that excitement. Following the success of the 2017 and 2019 IT film adaptations, Warner Bros. is expanding on the Stephen King horror franchise with a prequel show on HBO subtitled Welcome to Derry.
The highly anticipated series follows primarily new characters in the iconic Stephen King setting of Derry, Maine in 1962, twenty-seven years before the Losers Club’s terrifying experiences with Pennywise the Clown in the 2017 film. In addition to some familiar IT families like the Hanlons, Welcome to Derry includes connections to other iconic Stephen King novels, such as The Shining‘s Dick Hallorann.
IT: Welcome to Derry finally gives HBO a major horror franchise to expand on in the television format, bringing the success of Warner Bros.’ huge box office to the small screen. Welcome to Derry‘s premiere on October 26 will be a big test for HBO’s future in this sector, which is now gaining significantly more traction with the confirmation of another box office-record-breaking horror franchise’s TV spinoff.
The Conjuring Spinoff Confirmation Gives HBO Max Another Franchise Horror Series After IT: Welcome To Derry
With The Conjuring: Last Rites marking the main film series’ final entry and Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga’s last movie as Ed and Lorraine Warren, it makes sense that HBO Max would jump at the opportunity to expand the franchise’s success elsewhere. Early reports about The Conjuring series revealed it would continue the story of the main films, though it’s unclear what that now means for the fictionalized Warrens’ involvement.
Currently, HBO Max has kept the cast, characters, and more specific plot details for The Conjuring show under wraps. However, if it’s continuing the main films’ story, then it can be assumed that the series will pick up not long after The Conjuring: Last Rites‘ ending. This week, The Conjuring series has at least finally gotten an update about Nancy Won signing on as the showrunner alongside Peter Cameron and Cameron Squires as writers.
With The Conjuring show finally getting some long-awaited momentum, HBO Max has two massive horror franchises to build on in coming years. IT: Welcome to Derry already has a three-season plan (though is currently only confirmed through season 1), and could potentially expand with other Stephen King properties. Meanwhile, The Conjuring series could spawn more TV spinoffs from the larger franchise, such as with Annabelle and The Nun.
IT: Welcome To Derry & The Conjuring Series Are Very Different From Past HBO Horror Shows
IT: Welcome to Derry and The Conjuring series are primed to become the face of HBO’s horror TV lineup, with their franchise focus and lore-heavy stories departing from the network’s previous entries in the genre. That includes HBO’s The Outsider series from 2020, which adapted the Stephen King novel of the same name, which was a much more grounded, dark, gritty crime thriller with some supernatural elements mixed in.
IT and The Conjuring franchise have very different tones from a story like The Outsider, even though the eponymous Outsider villain and Pennywise the Clown are relatively similar evil entities. These shows will also be a departure from HBO’s Lovecraft Country, which was inspired by the stories and lore of H.P. Lovecraft, but put a larger focus on fantasy elements.
If IT: Welcome to Derry and The Conjuring shows prove to be hits, HBO Max will hopefully expand with even more variety in horror stories.
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