Series “It: Welcome to Derry” Among HBO’s Top Three Most Successful Premieres

Bill Skarsgård’s return as Pennywise has once again drawn millions of viewers to their screens.

The horror series It: Welcome to Derry premiered on HBO on October 26 and amassed an impressive audience in its first three days — the debut episode reached 5.7 million viewers across all HBO platforms, including linear cable and the HBO Max streaming service. That performance ranks the show as the third-most successful premiere in the network’s history, trailing only House of the Dragon and The Last of Us.

By comparison, House of the Dragon launched in 2022 with nearly 10 million viewers in its first 24 hours, while The Last of Us drew about 4.7 million. With those numbers, Welcome to Derry surpasses most recent HBO hits and reaffirms that Stephen King’s universe still commands a massive audience.

Set in 1962, the series explores early events in the town of Derry. It follows the first generation of the Losers’ Club — the predecessors of Mike Hanlon from the original films.

The show is produced by Andrés and Barbara Muschietti alongside Jason Fuchs. Bill Skarsgård returns to the role of Pennywise. The ensemble also includes Joshua Odjick, Chad Rook, Jovan Adepo, Chris Chalk, James Remar, Stephen Rider and others.

The second episode arrives on HBO Max on the night of October 31, just in time for Halloween. New episodes will be released weekly on Sundays thereafter. The first season consists of eight episodes.

Source: iXBT.games