The clown's impact on the children of Welcome to Derry shapes them throughout their adult lives, twisting them into the exact individuals who keep the community's pattern of hatred alive. It finds easy targets on kids from fractured households — youngsters who frequently grow up 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 Hanlon, even after choosing to stay in Derry, persists as the only Loser who doesn't completely succumb under Pennywise's sway.
In the fourth installment of the series, Leroy Hanlon finally becomes more aware of the paranormal entities enveloping the community, especially when the entity begins tormenting his child, Will Hanlon, during their fishing trip. The Hanlon family comprises some of the few grown-ups who are cognizant that something is amiss with the town, especially the father, who was revealed to be sensitive to the Shining when he was able to detect Dick Hallorann's use of it in episode 3. Subsequently, Leroy spots one of Pennywise's signature inflated orbs outside his residence. The ability, coupled with his failure to experience terror, combined with the foundation of his household, may be why he's capable of perceiving the entity's manifestations. However, consider if that psychic sensitivity is generational, and one of the reasons Mike is among the few adults in Derry who resisted succumbing to its cruelty?
Will is a member of the collective of kids at his educational institution being tormented by Pennywise. All his school friends come from broken homes, with caregivers who refuse to accept they're being targeted. The reason Will is being pursued is because of the cruelty of the town, paired with his potential sensitivity to shine, which renders him vulnerable. This family are ultimately outsiders in Derry during the early sixties, which lends itself towards the household sensing anomalies exist about the town from the onset. They also have a solid base that remains unbroken, in contrast to the folks who originate in the town, with bonds that have deteriorated internally.
Based on the original book, we know the young Will will end up at the Black Spot, where the psychic will save him from a blaze that the town bigots of Derry will ignite. In the recent film, we see that Will has a son named Mike and that Will ultimately dies in a fire, with Leroy outliving his own son and adopting his grandchild. The official story in the film is that the parents were on drugs, but given our current view of Will in Welcome to Derry, that's difficult to accept. Perhaps the shy youth, once he became an adult, leaned into drink to rid himself of the hauntings, or maybe the rotten town affected him initially, with the hate group ultimately finishing the task it began long before. Be it via the fear of the entity or via the cruelty of the community, instigated by Pennywise, the creature in the end achieves the final victory on him.
This chain of events would clarify how the elder Hanlon changes so radically from what we witness in the first film and the prequel. In his later years, Leroy appears resentful and much harsher with his parenting. Since he outlived his own offspring, it's understandable to observe such a profound shift. Nonetheless, his statements hold greater significance now that we know he's witnessed Pennywise's hauntings and the effects they had on his son. In the initial sequence of the movie, we see the boy hesitate to use a bolt gun on a sheep at the family property. Leroy reprimands him for delaying and offers an analogy that results in a survival-of-the-fittest situation.
“There are two places you can be in this world. You can be out here like we are, or you can be trapped inside,” he says as he gestures to the creature. “You dawdle hemming and hawing, and another is going to decide for you. But you won't know it until you feel that projectile between your eyes.”
Looking back, this could represent a bit of foreshadowing, something he regrets not imparting to his own child. Maybe he desires he had acted differently in his youth, but for certain factors, he couldn't resist the sickening allure of the town.
