Episode one of HBO’s new series, Welcome to Derry, delivered some seriously sinister television. Welcome to Derry is a prequel to Stephen King’s It, set in 1962 in the town of Derry, Maine. While it is not directly based on any of King’s novels, it draws inspiration and lore from the 1986 book to create an original storyline. And if you haven’t seen it yet — fair warning — there are spoilers ahead. (Though you might appreciate knowing what nightmares you’re in for.)
From the disappearance of local boy Matthew Clements to the movie-theater massacre carried out by a demon baby (uh, yeah, that happened), the hour-long premiere was packed with terror. But beyond the on-screen horrors, there was another element that made the It prequel disturbing: The Music Man. No, not a creepy busker with a theremin, but the 1962 feature film directed by Morton DaCosta.
The showrunners of Welcome to Derry geniusly repurposed one of The Music Man’s songs as the haunting soundtrack to Derry’s descent into madness.
If you’re unfamiliar with the plot, The Music Man tells the story of charismatic conman Harold Hill (played by Robert Preston), who arrives in the picture-perfect small town of River City, Iowa. His scam was to convince the townspeople to buy instruments for a boys’ band (that was never real), take their money, and leave as quickly as he arrived. The on-screen musical (although it was first a Broadway play) was written by American composer Meredith Willson, and featured hit songs like “Seventy-Six Trombones,” “The Wells Fargo Wagon,” and “(Ya Got) Trouble.”
The Music Man received one of the first Grammy Awards for Best Musical Theater Album. With Preston’s rendition of “(Ya Got) Trouble” even earning him a Golden Globe nomination.
That same song had a special — well, more like chilling — role in Welcome to Derry. The lyrics, “Ya got trouble, my friend,” echo briskly but ever so quietly in the background during some of the episode’s most pulse-quickening moments. What was once an upbeat, old-timey Broadway song now felt more like a warning sign for the residents of Derry.
HBO and Warner Bros. tapped siblings Andy and Barbara Muschietti to produce Welcome to Derry, following their successful roles as executive producers on other recent Stephen King adaptations, including It and It: Chapter 2.
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“Andy and I have been wanting to do a musical for a very long time — and we will at some point. So Andy thought it’d be great to do an original [Broadway] musical to start this episode,” Barbara tells Rolling Stone. “And trouble, that’s exactly what this ominous scene was about. The movie The Music Man is all about fear-mongering in a small town, so the themes are very aligned.”
Decades after it first hit the screen (and years before it was referenced in Welcome to Derry), the musical became a staple of pop culture, from becoming one of the most-played songs in Walt Disney theme parks to appearing in cult favorite movies like The Wedding Singer. In 2003, Matthew Broderick took on the role of Harold Hill for a television movie adaptation. In 2012, Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane performed “(Ya Got) Trouble” at the BBC Proms, a summer series that features up-and-coming talent in the U.K.
And most recently, the 2022 Broadway revival starred Hugh Jackman as Harold Hill alongside Sutton Foster — Wolverine himself singing “Ya Got Trouble” countless times during his year-long stint. Stage legends like Patti LuPone have covered the song (she belted it out at Carnegie Hall in 2002), and it’s been parodied and spoofed in shows like The Simpsons and Crazy Ex-Girlfriend.
But more than just being a popular song, Barbara and Andy Muschietti picked it for its ominous themes. “Danger, danger. Something is coming. A cloud is coming. There’s trouble afoot. And that’s what It is all about. That’s what Pennywise is all about. Just maintaining this constant message of, ‘You’re not safe anywhere, because there’s trouble around the corner,’” Barbara says. “Our soundtrack and our score, there’s a lot of great needle drops from the sixties that are giving you a picture of naivety and beauty and bubble gum, when what is happening in Derry is terrible and terrifying.”
Not only is this specific song from The Music Man featured in the first episode of the show, but in the cold open, the town’s local theater is showing the film, with Matthew Clements in attendance before his disappearance. Throughout the episode, “(Ya Got) Trouble” echoes eerily through the bathroom and sink pipes, reaching other children in the community, calling them to take action to find Matty. From the beginning to the end, it serves as a threatening signal that something dark is coming for Derry.
From Rolling Stone US
