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The clown's influence on the children of Welcome to Derry molds them long into adulthood, twisting them into the exact individuals who perpetuate the town's pattern of animosity alive. The creature finds easy targets on kids from fractured households — youngsters who often mature to repeat the same patterns as their parents. However, the Hanlon family distinguishes itself as one of the few family unit that never splinters, which could clarify why Mike, even after electing to remain in Derry, remains the only Loser who doesn't completely succumb under Pennywise's sway.

The Hanlon Family's Distinctive Resistance

In episode 4 of Welcome to Derry, Leroy Hanlon at last grows increasingly conscious of the supernatural forces enveloping the neighborhood, particularly when It starts haunting his child, Will, during their angling excursion. The Hanlon clan consists of a small number of grown-ups who are cognizant that something is amiss with the municipality, especially Leroy, who was shown to be sensitive to the Shining when he was able to detect Dick Hallorann's employment of it in episode 3. Later, Leroy sees one of the clown's trademark balloons outside his residence. The ability, alongside his failure to experience terror, combined with the foundation of his household, may be why he's able to see Pennywise's hauntings. However, consider if that psychic sensitivity is hereditary, and one of the reasons Mike Hanlon is among the few individuals in Derry who didn't lose themselves to its cruelty?

Will is part of the collective of kids at his school being terrorized by the clown. All his school friends hail from dysfunctional families, with caregivers who refuse to accept they're being targeted. The cause Will is being pursued is due to the viciousness of the community, paired with his potential sensitivity to psychic abilities, which makes him susceptible. The Hanlons are fundamentally strangers in the town during 1962, which lends itself towards the household sensing anomalies exist about the locality from the beginning. Additionally, they possess a solid base that remains unbroken, in contrast to the residents who come from the area, with relationships that have deteriorated within.

Historical Context

Based on the It novel, we know the young Will will find himself at the Black Spot, where the psychic will save him from a blaze that the town bigots of Derry will ignite. In the 2017 movie, we see that Will has a boy named Mike and that Will eventually perishes in a fire, with Leroy outliving his own child and taking his grandson in. The official story in the film is that Mike's parents were on substances, but given our current view of Will in the series, that's hard to believe. Maybe the timid boy, once he grew up, turned to alcohol to rid himself of the hauntings, or perhaps the rotten environment got to him first, with the hate group eventually finishing the task it started years ago. Whether through the fear of Pennywise or through the malice of the community, seeded by Pennywise, the creature in the end gets the final victory on Will.

Leroy's Transformation

This chain of events would explain how the elder Hanlon transforms so drastically from what we see in the first film and the prequel. In his older age, Leroy appears resentful and much harsher with his parenting. Because he survived his own son, it's understandable to observe such a profound shift. Nonetheless, his words carry more weight since we are aware he's witnessed the clown's activities and the impacts they wrought upon his child. In the initial sequence of It, we see Mike hesitate to use a stunning device on a animal at Leroy's farm. His grandfather chastises him for hesitating and offers an metaphor that results in a survival-of-the-fittest situation.

“You have two options you can be in this world. You can be out here like we are, or you can be in there,” he states as he points to the creature. “You dawdle indecisive, and another is going to decide for you. But you will be unaware it until you feel that projectile in your head.”

In hindsight, this could be a bit of prediction, a lesson he regrets not imparting to his own son. Perhaps he desires he had done something in his youth, but for some reason, he couldn't resist the repellent allure of the town.