HBO Ono: Welcome to Derry delves into Stephen King's story, exploring a cursed town in Maine decades before the events of This And It: Chapter 2 along with others characters and images from his many works. The show's primary source material is a series of interludes in King's original book, which are snippets of Mike Hanlon's research into Pennywise's appearances throughout Derry's history. However, one of Welcome to DerryThe most interesting storylines are not from the book at all.
Instead of, Welcome to Derry delves into a piece of Derry's past, created especially for It: Chapter 2: Incorporation of Native American lore. In one scene in the film, Mike reveals that he spoke with members of the fictional Shokopiwa tribe that ruled the land of Derry centuries ago. They now remain on the outskirts, away from Pennywise's wrath, and use the ritual to drive the monster away.
This one scene felt rather superfluous in the main narrative – and even drew some criticism as a result. Now the creators Ono: Welcome to Derry. trying to fix everything.
In an interview with Polygon, Kimberly Norris Guerrero, the Native American actress who plays Rose (a local business owner harboring some dark secrets), notes that while this particular idea didn't come from Stephen King, the author has a long history of using Native Americans as plot devices in works such as Shine, Pet SemataryAnd dream Catcher. According to her, thanks to this series, Native Americans finally received place at the table.
“This is a great opportunity to expand King's universe because so many of the stories are based on land,” says Guerrero. “The land is a character in itself. The land of Derry is rife with history. The land beneath Shine replete with history. The land beneath Shawshank Penitentiary is rich in history, and that history is our history.”
The land of Derry is rich in history.
Creators Ono: Welcome to Derry worked alongside the real indigenous Wabanaki tribe to help the show's fictional Shokopiwa tribe feel more authentic. The Wabanaki are an alliance of five First Nations: the Mi'kmaq, Maliseet, Passamaquoddy, Penobscot and Abenaki. Their traditional territory extends from Newfoundland to mid-Maine and includes parts of Quebec. Their stories, land, and culture replace the previously added story arc from It: Chapter 2, and with the help of the Wabanaki people, they turned it into something more respectful.
If viewers pay attention to the end of some upcoming episodes, they might even see some traditional Indigenous names in credits playing the role of some members of the Shokopiva tribe. The show's creators also collaborated with John Bear Mitchella member of the Penobscot Nation and a professor at the University of Maine who works in film and television both in front of and behind the camera.
“The Wabanaki Nation has been here for thousands of years,” Guerrero says. “So it was really exciting and important to dive into Wabanaki history and work with our elder, John Bear Mitchell. It was a deep dive into something very culturally important and historically factual. And this is not what was before, but what is, and what will happen in the future.”
Ono: Welcome to Derry airs weekly on HBO and HBO Max.
