IT: Welcome to Derry Season 2's latest update may have revealed the first possible look at the upcoming sophomore run's fresh visual take on Derry. HBO Max's IT prequel series is set to return to Pennywise's home turf of Derry, Maine, but in a different time period: 1935. The series' shift into 1935 means that Welcome to Derry will showcase a brand-new visual and narrative palette significantly different from Season 1's 1962 setting, which was built around idealized mid-century American small-town nostalgia that gradually darkens. Some visual cues, such as early-1960s Americana imagery, were included to make Derry feel like a believable Cold War-era Maine town in Season 1. The surface was bright and postcard-like, contrasting with the colder, more sinister underbelly as the story progressed in its debut season.
IT: Welcome to Derry Season 2 will enter a new era as it shifts into the Depression. In October 2026, Welcome to Derry showrunner Brad Caleb Kane told Entertainment Weekly that the upcoming season will be "a Warner Bros. gangster picture through the lens of Pennywise," centered on the infamous Bradley Gang massacre, with a different form of the clown and a bloodier atmosphere anchored by economic hardship and street-level crime.
Location scouts from the team behind IT: Welcome to Derry Season 2 have looked at Owego, New York, for exterior scenes. Mayor Mike Barratta shared with local reporting from Binghamton that the Village Board met with a location manager, approved a motion of support, and believes the village is on a short list, though noting it is not official yet. Still, this is an exciting development for the show's sophomore run. Owego would give Derry a fresh exterior look distinct from Season 1 and earlier IT projects, marking the first time any adaptation has filmed in the New York village.
Owego's Central Historic District features a compact, walkable downtown with 19th-century commercial and civic buildings along the Susquehanna River. Owego's Courthouse Square, designed by Miles F. Howe, highlighted a prominent red-brick structure with four corner towers, limestone details, pointed arches, and Second Empire influences.
This location could stand in for Derry's central civic heart, namely its courthouse square or main public gathering place.
This would give the 1935 version of the town a distinctly historic American-landmark feel, distinct from the Port Hope streetscapes used previously.
The Owego Riverwalk is a 1,200-foot pedestrian promenade along the north bank of the Susquehanna River in downtown Owego, New York. This setting has a strong historic character, which is perfect for Season 2's 1935 Depression-era Derry.
The Riverwalk and its immediate surroundings could serve as a practical and atmospheric stand-in for riverside or canal-adjacent sections of the town. Season 2 could use this setting to showcase sequences that connect Derry to the water. It's worth noting that rivers and waterways are often present in King's Derry lore and in the broader IT mythology.
Riverow is the signature commercial block within Owego's Central Historic District. This historic location covers the core of downtown Owego and includes roughly 83 contributing buildings across the street.
Riverow and the surrounding Owego Central Historic District offer a ready-made stand-in for Derry's main commercial and civic core.
One of the scenes from Stephen King's IT novel that will be the focal point of IT: Welcome to Derry Season 2 will center around the Bradley Gang Massacre, and this setting provides the perfect backdrop for the gang's arrival, the building tension, and the eventual violent confrontation on the streets of 1935 Derry.
The Owego Elks Lodge occupies the former Latham A. Burrows House at 223 Front Street. This architecture is unique because it features a low-pitched hipped roof with modillions, symmetrical facades, large windows with decorative paneled lintels, and a prominent monumental tetrastyle Ionic portico that dominates the street front.
The Elks Lodge building could serve as a stand-in for a prominent private residence or a civic gathering place in Derry, potentially a town hall where residents would gather to find ways to deal with the arrival of the Bradley Gang.
St. Paul's Church is a historic Episcopal church at 117 Main Street in Owego, New York. The church's dark stone massing, pointed arches, tower, and richly textured materials give it a distinctly late-19th-century ecclesiastical presence, making it stand out in the historic town.
Welcome to Derry Season 2 could utilize St. Paul's Church as a strong stand-in for one of Derry's prominent houses of worship. While organized religion is not a crucial part of IT's story, the sophomore run's exploration of this topic would add an additional layer of period-specific texture, reflecting the role churches played in small-town social life during the Depression era.
IT: Welcome to Derry Season 2's shift to Owego would mark the first use of a U.S. location for major Derry exteriors in the modern adaptations and give Season 2's 1935 setting a distinct Riverside, New York, historic-district appearance, rather than the Canadian towns used previously. The 1990 IT miniseries used British Columbia locations, while street-level Port Hope downtown was used for Derry exteriors in the films and Welcome to Derry.
Why IT: Welcome to Derry Season 2 Has a Golden Opportunity to Expand the Franchise
IT: Welcome to Derry has a rare chance to meaningfully expand the franchise, and a key part of that opportunity lies in the potential shift to Owego, New York. Unlike Season 1 and Andy Muschietti's IT movies, which relied heavily on Port Hope, Ontario, as a stand-in for Derry, Owego has never been used in any prior IT project.
This clean slate gives the series room to completely redefine the town's visual identity for its 1935 setting, effectively deepening the franchise's sense of history and scale. This is on top of unleashing Pennywise's new, scary power that is poised to make trouble for the new cast of protagonists and townsfolk in Season 2.
As Season 2 jumps back to the Depression-era cycle, this change in era already demands a different aesthetic than the mid-century Americana of Season 1, and filming in Owego would support that shift. The iconic locations, ranging from the Central Historic District to the Riverow complex, offer a ready-made downtown that feels denser and more period-appropriate for 1930s Maine.
Changes in era and location matter for franchise expansion because Derry has always served as more than a backdrop to the ongoing story. Stephen King himself treated the town's physical layout as integral to IT's mythology. Introducing exterior shots of Derry that audiences have never seen in Season 2 can make the 1935 cycle feel like a genuine earlier chapter rather than a different variation of the same place.
All in all, this distinction strengthens the series' long-term structure, mainly because each 27-year cycle can carry its own visual signature, making the larger timeline feel more expansive.
