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The clown's impact on the young residents of the Derry series shapes them long into adulthood, transforming them into the very adults who perpetuate the town's pattern of hatred alive. It preys most easily on children from broken homes — children who often grow up to replicate the identical behaviors as their guardians. But, the Hanlon family distinguishes itself as one of the few households that never splinters, which may explain why Mike Hanlon, even after electing to remain in Derry, persists as the only Loser who doesn't completely succumb under Pennywise's sway.

The Hanlon Family's Unique Resistance

In the fourth installment of Welcome to Derry, Leroy Hanlon at last grows increasingly conscious of the paranormal entities enveloping the community, especially when It begins tormenting his son, Will Hanlon, during their fishing trip. The Hanlon family comprises a small number of adults who are cognizant that things are not right with the town, notably the father, who was shown to be receptive to psychic abilities when he was capable of sensing a fellow psychic's employment of it in the third episode. Later, he spots one of the clown's trademark balloons outside his residence. The ability, coupled with his failure to experience terror, along with the base of his family, may be why he's capable of perceiving the entity's manifestations. However, consider if that psychic sensitivity is hereditary, and a key factor Mike is among the few adults in the town who didn't lose themselves to the town's malevolence?

Will is part of the collective of kids at his school being tormented by the clown. His classmates come from dysfunctional families, with caregivers who don't believe they're being haunted. The reason he is being pursued is because of the cruelty of the community, combined with his potential sensitivity to psychic abilities, which renders him vulnerable. The Hanlons are ultimately outsiders in Derry during 1962, which lends itself towards the household feeling anomalies exist about the town from the onset. Additionally, they possess a good foundation that remains unbroken, in contrast to the residents who originate in the town, with bonds that have deteriorated internally.

Historical Context

Based on the original book, we know the juvenile Will Hanlon will find himself at the infamous nightclub, where Hallorann will save him from a blaze that the local KKK members of Derry will cause. In the recent film, we see that Will has a son named Mike and that the father eventually perishes in a configration, with his father surviving his own son and taking his grandson in. The official story in the film is that the parents were on drugs, but given our current view of him in the series, that's hard to believe. Maybe the shy boy, once he became an adult, leaned into drink to rid himself of the torments, or maybe the rotten environment got to him first, with the hate group ultimately completing the job it began years ago. Whether through the fear of the entity or through the malice of the town, instigated by Pennywise, It eventually achieves the final victory on him.

The Father's Evolution

These occurrences would explain how the elder Hanlon transforms so radically from what we witness in the first film and the prequel. In his older age, Leroy seems resentful and much stricter with his discipline. Since he survived his own son, it's comprehensible to observe such a profound shift. However, his words carry more weight now that we know he's seen the clown's activities and the effects they had on his son. In the opening scene of It, we see the boy pause to use a stunning device on a animal at Leroy's farm. Leroy chastises him for delaying and offers an metaphor that leads to a kill-or-be-killed situation.

“You have two options you can be in this existence. You can be in the open like us, or you can be trapped inside,” Leroy states as he points to the sheep. “You dawdle hemming and hawing, and someone is going to decide for you. But you won't know it until you experience that projectile between your eyes.”

Looking back, this could be a bit of foreshadowing, something he regrets not imparting to his own son. Perhaps he wishes he had acted differently in his past, but for certain factors, he couldn't resist the repellent attraction of Derry.