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The clown's influence on the children of the Derry series shapes them throughout their adult lives, transforming them into the exact individuals who keep the town's pattern of animosity alive. It finds easy targets on kids from broken homes — children who frequently mature to replicate the same patterns as their parents. But, the Hanlon household distinguishes itself as a rare example of a households that never splinters, which may explain why Mike Hanlon, even after choosing to stay in the town, remains the sole member who doesn't completely succumb under the clown's influence.

The Hanlon Family's Distinctive Resilience

In episode 4 of the series, Leroy Hanlon finally becomes more aware of the supernatural forces enveloping the community, especially when the entity begins tormenting his son, Will Hanlon, during their angling excursion. The Hanlon clan comprises a small number of adults who are aware that things are not right with the town, notably Leroy, who was revealed to be sensitive to the Shining when he was able to detect Dick Hallorann's employment of it in the third episode. Later, Leroy sees one of Pennywise's signature balloons outside his house. This gift, alongside his failure to feel fear, combined with the base of his family, could be why he's able to see Pennywise's hauntings. But what if that shining is hereditary, and one of the reasons Mike Hanlon is one of the only individuals in Derry who didn't lose themselves to the town's malevolence?

The boy is a member of the group of children at his school being terrorized by Pennywise. His classmates hail from broken homes, with parents who refuse to accept they're being targeted. The reason Will is being haunted is because of the viciousness of the town, combined with his likely receptiveness to shine, which makes him susceptible. This family are fundamentally outsiders in Derry during the early sixties, which lends itself towards the household feeling something is off about the locality from the onset. They also have a good foundation that isn't fractured, in contrast to the residents who come from the town, with bonds that have decayed internally.

Backstory Connections

Based on the original book, we know the young Will Hanlon will find himself at the infamous nightclub, where the psychic will save him from a fire that the local KKK members of Derry will ignite. In the 2017 film, we observe that Will has a son named Mike and that Will eventually perishes in a configration, with his father surviving his own son and taking his grandson in. The public account in the film is that Mike's parents were on drugs, but given our current view of Will in Welcome to Derry, that's hard to believe. Maybe the timid youth, once he became an adult, leaned into drink to rid himself of the hauntings, or perhaps the rotten environment got to him first, with the KKK eventually finishing the job it started years ago. Whether through the fear of the entity or via the cruelty of the town, instigated by Pennywise, It in the end gets the final victory on Will.

Leroy's Transformation

This chain of events would clarify how the elder Hanlon changes so radically from what we witness in the first film and Welcome to Derry. In his older age, he appears resentful and much harsher with his discipline. Because he survived his own offspring, it's understandable to observe such a profound shift. However, his statements carry more weight now that we know he's seen the clown's activities and the impacts they had on his son. In the opening scene of It, we observe Mike pause to use a bolt gun on a sheep at the family property. His grandfather reprimands him for delaying and provides an metaphor that leads to a survival-of-the-fittest situation.

“You have two options you can be in this existence. You can be out here like us, or you can be in there,” he says as he points to the creature. “You dawdle hemming and hawing, and someone is going to make that choice. But you won't know it until you feel that bolt in your head.”

In hindsight, this could be a piece of prediction, a lesson he wishes he had told his own child. Maybe he wishes he had done something in his past, but for certain factors, he was unable to avoid the sickening allure of the town.