Jovan Adepo as Leroy Hanlon and Taylour Paige as wife Charlotte standing together in IT: Welcome to DerryImage via HBO
By
Christina Radish
Published 19 minutes ago
Christina Radish is the Senior Entertainment Reporter at Collider. Having worked at Collider for over a decade (since 2009), her primary focus is on film and television interviews with talent both in front of and behind the camera. She is a theme park fanatic, which has lead to covering various land and ride openings at the Disneyland Resort and Universal Studios Hollywood, a lover of all things The Muppets and Fraggle Rock, and a huge music fan, for which she judges life by the time before Pearl Jam and the time after.
She is also a member of the Critics Choice Association and the Television Critics Association.
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[Editor's note: The following contains spoilers for IT: Welcome to Derry.]
Summary
- The HBO series 'IT: Welcome to Derry' is set in 1962, exploring Pennywise's origins in Derry.
- Jovan Adepo and Taylour Paige built authentic family chemistry, along with Blake Cameron James who plays their son, sharing music playlists and building on-set trust.
- Leroy Hanlon's military pride clashes with Derry's secrets, as the entity preys on fears.
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, Air Force Major Leroy Hanlon (Jovan Adepo) moves his family, which includes wife Charlotte (Taylour Paige) and son Will (Blake Cameron James) to Maine under the orders of General Shaw (James Remar). But what he doesn’t know is that Derry has a sinister secret that puts everyone within its borders in danger as it feeds on their deepest fears.
During this interview with Collider, co-stars Adepo and Paige discussed bonding as a family, sharing music playlists for inspiration, what Leroy thinks about General Shaw, the masked men attack, how Charlotte feels about this town she’s found herself in, the friendship between Charlotte and Rose (Kimberly Guerrero), the dynamic with Leroy and Dick Hallorann (Chris Chalk), how much fun Adepo had working with Chalk, shooting the encounter in the sewer with the entity, and being pleasantly surprised by the season finale.
Collider: Your characters are the new family in town, and it feels like they come to Derry as a pretty tight-knit family. Did you guys spend time together to find that family dynamic, or did it feel very natural?
TAYLOUR PAIGE: Both. It felt natural, but we did spend some time. Jovan and I met in Los Angeles and had coffee and just talked. We were super stoked. We both really love and respect the craft, so we wanted to bring familiarity and trust. He created a playlist for us.
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Posts By Christina Radish Nov 16, 2025Jovan, do you typically like to create a playlist?
JOVAN ADEPO: Yeah, sometimes it’s extremely helpful for me. Taylour and I had one for Leroy and Charlotte that was really interesting. I would use it more as a study tool. Of course, it was for the enjoyment between two scene partners and friends, but also, whenever I was studying certain scenes, it was what I imagined Leroy or Charlotte would be listening to. And then, I had a shared playlist with Andy [Muschietti] as well. Andy put songs that he might have wanted to put in the show, just to get an idea of the space and the feeling that some of these songs gave.
PAIGE: Sam Cooke, The Supremes, Ray Charles, Ella Fitzgerald.
ADEPO: Ellington.
PAIGE: Nat King Cole.
ADEPO: It’s a fun exercise to do sometimes if it’s helpful.
PAIGE (to Adepo): Do you do that for all your characters?
ADEPO: I’ve done it for quite a few and it’s been nice. And I like to share it with other departments, in case they’re ever just curious about what I’m thinking about when I prepare for scenes. It just adds a bit of connectivity between people, if they care to. I don’t force them to join playlists.
Leroy Hanlon Is Feeling Let Down by General Shaw’s True Motives in ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’
"He put his family in danger for a bit of a selfish pursuit."
James Remar as General Shaw standing across from Jovan Adepo as Leroy Hanlon in IT: Welcome to DerryImage via HBO
Jovan, your character is not just trying to find this place in town, but he’s also trying to find his place on the military base. What does he think of General Shaw when he gets to Derry, and how does that change when he realizes the risk that he knowingly put him and his family in?
ADEPO: Initially, Leroy has a high level of respect for this man. He's a four-star general who has made a career out of being an excellent airman. Leroy has indirectly followed in his footsteps in that way. When it comes to officers, and I have a lot of friends who are in the military in different branches, as well as my father who’s since retired, and a man who has made a career out of serving his country and becoming an officer, there’s a respect in that long and tough journey. He feels a level of respect that General Shaw has found him and wants him to come in with his specialties and execute this mission. But as the series develops and he continues to get half-answers and continues to feel the runaround, it’s a bit of disrespect and disappointment. He goes from thinking that he was the teacher’s ideal pupil and wanting to one day be a general to realizing that he was using him as a pawn for his grand scheme and his own selfish reasons. It's really a letdown for Leroy in the long run because he put his family in danger for a bit of a selfish pursuit.
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Posts By Christina Radish Oct 31, 2025The moment when your character is attacked by masked men seemed terrifying. What was it like to shoot that scene with those creepy masks?
ADEPO: It was pretty fun. I wouldn’t say a lot of fun because, even though it’s very well-choreographed, and that’s a shout-out to the stunt coordinators and the gentlemen who were the performers, when it comes to fight sequences and that type of stuff, you always get your little bumps and bruises, but they make sure that they’re taking as minimal risk as they can. They make sure that the timing is right on everything. Filming it, you’re just trying to be in line with the choreography. You’re not thinking about the darkness or the scariness of the bug masks. You just try not to miss your mark because then somebody could get hurt. But I’m glad it turned out well. Seeing Rudy [Mancusco] get thrown in there, he’s a smaller guy with a lot of heart. Seeing him jump on a big guy’s back and getting flipped, I enjoyed that. He’s great. He’s incredibly talented.
Charlotte Hanlon Has Some Thoughts About the Town of Derry in ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’
"If boys will be boys, maybe they need to stop being those kinds of boys."
Taylour, because Charlotte’s husband is gone dealing with military business quite a bit, it leaves her to explore and figure out Derry. What does she think of this town that she finds herself in?
PAIGE: Doesn’t her face say so much? She’s definitely like, “What is going on?!” I think Charlotte is hopeful. She’s like, “Okay, this is where we’re at.” But she is an engaged observer. As you can see in that scene, when the boys are beating up that little boy and no one bats a lash and everyone turns their check, she is really disturbed and has a sense that something is just not right with these people in this town. And also, being a woman that has to stay at home pretty much all day as a homemaker, she has time to think and reflect and be like, “Whoa, that was a weird day. That was a weird interaction. Everything is in its proper place. I understand that we are who we are in this country, but something on top of that, is just not right. What did my husband do now? He’s really done it this time.” If boys will be boys, maybe they need to stop being those kinds of boys.
It also feels like Charlotte and Rose could really be friends. Did it feel like they have a connection above so many of the other people in town?
PAIGE: Definitely. Charlotte is so desperate for connection and for connecting, talking and sharing. She is really concerned. Woman to woman, she’s like, “Do I need to be concerned? Because I feel it.” But also, she’s played by the incredible Kimberly Guerrero, who is my dear friend now. She’s become this big sister/auntie/mama who is someone that I truly adore and admire and who’s incredibly special to me. I do think that our sisterhood growing in real life is something that you see between Charlotte and Rose. You see those eyes. Rose gives her those eyes that are like, “Can I trust you? Is everything okay? You’ve lived here a long time.” And Rose gives her just enough to be like, “Yes, things do happen from time to time but keep your faith.” It’s like, “Just mind your business.” There’s a lot between what is said and what is not.
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Posts By Christina Radish 2 days agoJovan, as Lee learns more about what’s going on in Derry, he also learns that Hallorann knows more than he’d initially revealed. How does your character feel about the fact that Hallorann tried to dig into his mind?
ADEPO: They have a really interesting dynamic that was fun to explore with Chris [Chalk], with Leroy being a very successful military officer at a relatively young age for that rank, and Dick being older and of a lower rank. Leroy is very proud of his status in the military and he commands respect. He’s used to perhaps not getting the complete respect from his white colleagues, but to get this aloof, brushed off attitude from Dick is a real turnoff for Leroy. So, to find out that he’s over imposed himself into Leroy’s life, especially by going into his mind without his permission, it’s another act of disrespect and he’s just trying to make it real apparent that, “Hey, man, I’m just here to protect my family and do what I need to do at work. How about you not make my life more complicated, or else I’ll have to get a little physical.” Chalk plays him beautifully where he’s like, “Hey, man, you saved me. I have no intentions of pissing you off even more.” He’s also doing his job, whether Leroy knows that or not. Chris just annoys me in real life, but I say that with love. We’ve worked together before and he’s a dear friend, but he knows how to push my buttons, as an actor and as Leroy. I think that just really shines through on camera.
Leroy Hanlon Had to Face His Fear in the Sewer in ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’
"Those were some long days of just being wet and staying wet."
Jovan Adepo as Leroy Hanlon standing on the porch with Chris Chalk as Dick Hallorann in IT: Welcome to DerryImage via HBO
Jovan, in episode five, your character finally had direct contact with this entity, and everybody has different experiences with it in the sewer. Leroy thinks it’s Charlotte that he’s seeing. What was it like to figure out that encounter? How was it to shoot that in the sewer tunnels?
ADEPO: It was really uncomfortable to film those scenes, just because of the space and being soaked in water. There were a bunch of soldiers there, as well. Especially for the moment with Taylour, or Charlotte, she brought up a question that stumped me a bit, as to why it was her that IT used to try to manifest fear in Leroy. I’m not completely sure. When I was filming it, I wasn’t completely sure.
PAIGE: Maybe he’s worried that I could ruin something.
ADEPO: Ruin something in his career pursuits. It’s mentioned at the dinner table when she says something along the lines of, “I can’t behave or explore as I want to because I don’t want to disrespect the man in his uniform.” Perhaps what Leroy is afraid of, that IT tried to use, was that in her pursuit for justice, she could sabotage his career aspirations. It was a nice little revelation.
PAIGE: It’s something to think about. That’s what our show is. There’s lots to think about. You’ll go back and be like, “Oh, I didn’t notice that.”
ADEPO: To film in the tunnel, those were some long days of just being wet and staying wet.
PAIGE: They made sure we had extra warm things underneath our costumes. They made extra big costumes, so that we could wear a wetsuit underneath. I had to actually have on rain boots. When you see me in the water, that was a special thing and super specific.
ADEPO (to Paige): You had rain boots?
PAIGE: I had rain boots. Did you not?
ADEPO: No, we couldn’t wear rain boots. We were wearing our costume boots.
PAIGE: Sorry about it. That’s why they pay you the big bucks.
ADEPO: You’re silly.
Without spoilers, when you guys learned about how the season would end, what was your emotional reaction?
ADEPO: I was pleasantly surprised by the way that they ended it. I think it’s well-earned, deserved, and interesting. It’s fun.
PAIGE: I haven’t seen it yet, but I remember how it felt, and we had a lot of fun doing what we did. We had a lot of fun together. I can’t say who was together, but there was some togetherness.
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It: Welcome to Derry
Like Follow Followed TV-MA Horror Mystery Drama Release Date October 26, 2025 Network HBO Directors Andy Muschietti Writers Jason Fuchs, Stephen King, Austin Guzman Franchise(s) IT
8 Images
Dick Hallorann with his eyes wide looking angry in It Welcome to Derry
Bill Skarsgard's Pennywise in IT Welcome to Derry trailer 2Image courtesy of HBO Max
Kid similing in IT Welcome To DerryImage via HBO Max
It: Welcome to Derry teens looking surprised at something off screenImage via HBO
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Taylour Paige
Charlotte Hanlon
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Jovan Adepo
Leroy Hanlon
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IT: Welcome to Derry airs on HBO and is available to stream on HBO Max. Check out the trailer:
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IT: Welcome to Derry
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