Stephen King IT Welcome to Derry has quickly become one of the most talked-about horror series this year, mixing gruesome visuals with intense psychological themes on HBO. In a recent interview, Stephen King, known as the master of horror, revealed that one particular scene from Episode 2 left a lasting impression on him, demonstrating how the show’s creators continue to expand and reinvent his universe.
The series, helmed by Barbara Muschietti and a team of writers including Jason Fuchs and Brad Caleb Kane, launched with a shocking premiere that nearly eliminated all of its newly introduced child characters in a dramatic twist reminiscent of major TV moments. The decision to extract such high emotional stakes right from the beginning set the stage for even more haunting developments in subsequent episodes.
King himself spoke with the New York Post and expressed how certain scenes in the show deliver potent terror and surreal imagery:
“There are plenty of horrors and lots of surreal visuals. There’s a supermarket scare that sticks in my mind, complete with pickle jars.”
— Stephen King, Author. This supermarket scene, featured in Episode 2 titled “The Thing in the Dark,” managed to unsettle even King, who is no stranger to horror.
A New Nightmare: Lilly’s Traumatic Experience in the Grocery Store
Following the devastating events of the first episode, one of the few children to survive is Lilly, portrayed by Clara Stack. The series offers a flashback with Matty, played by Miles Eckhardt, which finally reveals the pain that haunts Lilly. Years earlier, Lilly’s father suffered a tragic death at a pickle factory, killed in a bizarre accident while trying to recover her lost mood ring. The tragedy spawned a local urban legend suggesting his remains ended up in pickle jars across Maine, which only deepened Lilly’s sense of guilt and sorrow, eventually leading her to a mental health hospital.
Her trauma becomes a target for her peers, who ridicule her by filling her locker with pickle jars, further deepening her wounds. When Lilly visits the local grocery store in “The Thing in the Dark,” reality dissolves into a waking nightmare. Derry’s dark influence is known to cause children to see horrifying visions, but Lilly’s experience escalates beyond what viewers have seen before. The grocery aisles start to distort, her deceased friends appear on cereal boxes, and the store‘s loudspeaker mocks her emotional turmoil.
The scene intensifies as Lilly is surrounded by rows of pickle jars, which at first seem innocuous but soon reveal gruesome contents—her father’s severed limbs within the brine. As the jars begin to shatter and their contents merge on the floor, they form an enormous, monstrous entity made of pickles, glass, and nightmares. The effect is both horrifying and deeply emotional, leaving viewers and even King himself unsettled.
The Pickle Monster: An Original Creation for Welcome to Derry
What makes this particular supermarket sequence noteworthy is its originality—this set piece is not borrowed from King’s original IT novel or prior adaptations. Instead, the character Lilly and her nightmarish encounter were crafted specifically for IT: Welcome to Derry by the writing team to fit into the established horror mythology. Despite being new, the scene feels authentically King in its combination of grief, guilt, psychological tension, and surreal horror, echoing themes from his classics like The Shining and Carrie.
King himself went on to praise Andy Muschietti’s direction for his approach to terror, remarking in the same interview:
“a touch of genius when it comes to scares.”
— Stephen King, Author. The fact that King expressed excitement and support for these new elements is notable, since he has often been critical or ambivalent towards adaptations of his work in the past.
This willingness to introduce original characters like Lilly allows the showrunners—including Barbara Muschietti, Jason Fuchs, Brad Caleb Kane, and Andy Muschietti—to explore new emotional territory while remaining true to the essence of King’s universe. The terror that plagues Derry is shown to be bigger and more complex than the villain Pennywise alone, as the trauma of ordinary townspeople contributes to the darkness that haunts the town. Clara Stack’s performance, conveying the intensity of Lilly’s fear and suffering, adds to the emotional weight and authenticity of the sequence.
What Lies Ahead for IT: Welcome to Derry
IT: Welcome to Derry, having only aired a handful of episodes, is already showcasing its ambition to both shock and move its audience in equal measure. With the approaching on-screen arrival of Bill Skarsgård as Pennywise, anticipation for even more inventive and disturbing horrors is high. The series’ unique blend of new storylines, like Lilly’s ordeal, and familiar Derry mythology keeps both longtime fans and newcomers on edge.
The attention and praise from Stephen King himself solidifies Welcome to Derry’s credentials, suggesting that the creative team’s expansion of his world strikes the right balance of innovation and loyalty to his distinctive style. The unsettling “pickle jar” grocery store scene is just a preview of the show’s potential for groundbreaking horror, as its combination of psychological depth and terrifying visuals continues to attract viewers and spark conversation.
As IT: Welcome to Derry climbs in popularity, bringing new interpretations and challenges to the established lore, its future episodes are poised to further explore the relationship between trauma, supernatural evil, and the cycle of fear in Derry. With performances from actors such as Taylour Paige (Charlotte Hanlon) and Jovan Adepo (Leroy Hanlon), the ensemble cast also contributes to the emotional richness that has come to define Stephen King’s stories. Whether you’re a longtime fan or new to the horrors of Derry, there is much more to uncover as the series unfolds.
