Welcome back fans of horror! Today we will explore the twisted and scary world of Stephan King! In this video, we will dig through a character, an unsung hero and one of the main protagonists of the epic universe of IT! As the title has already given away, we will be talking about the last member of the losers’ club and the keeper of Derry’s dark secrets, Mike Hanlon.
But before we move on to the video, let us give you a little sneak peek into what we have for you! From his origins in the novel to his portrayals in the 1990 miniseries and the blockbuster films, we’ll uncover what makes Mike such a vital character and why his story resonates so deeply. We hope you’re ready to immerse yourself in the fog of Derry and meet Mike Hanlon.
Who is Mike Hanlon?
Remember the losers’ club in the movie IT? Mike Hanlon is one of the seven members of the Losers’ Club. He is one of the misfits who come together to form an unbreakable alliance against the ancient evil known as Pennywise in Stephan King’s IT! But his struggle never really started when Pennywise came into the picture, it began with him being black. He was the only black kid in Derry, Maine which pretty much explains how he is haunted by both the prejudice rotting the town and by the dark clouds of Pennywise with no way to escape it all. Mike Hanlon was born in 1946 according to the novel. Growing up with racism and the evil forces catching up to him makes him resilient and such a strong character, truly a driving force for the Losers Club!
What makes Mike Hanlon’s so unique? His character is unique as he is the one who stayed behind as other members of the Losers Club moved on with their lives. As a historian and a watchman fueled by his keen interest in Derry’s history anchored by his father Will Hanlon, he is the keeper of the curse that runs through Derry’s sewage. There is no doubt about the fact that he is courageous and intellectual beyond his years. Whether it’s facing his bullies like Henry Bowers or the century-old regime of Pennywise, he does it all and comes out even stronger.
Let’s start with a little history. Mike was born to Will and Jessica Hanlon. In the 2017 film, Mike Hanlon gives away a little part of his past. He tells the Losers Club that he lost his parents in a fire. He used to live with his parents in a house on Harris Avenue, When the fire broke down he survived but his parents were trapped in the next room over him. Since then he has been living with his grandfather and his pet dog Mr Chip. He goes to Neibolt Street Church School honouring his mother’s legacy as her mother was a Baptist.
As he was growing up, he was targeted by Henry Bowers. Henry Bowers’ hatred towards Mike Hanlon was rooted in his father’s racism towards Mike Hanlon’s father Will. To give you all a little measure of Henry’s hatred let us tell you about a horrific stunt that Henry pulled. He poisoned Mr Chip, Mike’s pet. His feelings towards Mike were so vicious that he gave rat poison to the dog.
Mike Hanlon starts getting a little confidence and strength with the arrival of the Losers Club in his life. They save him from Henry Bowers by starting a rock fight in the Barrens. This moment cemented his place in the Losers’ club and Henry is also cautious now because he is not against one but seven underdogs.
Mike Hanlon in the Novel
In Stephen King’s 1989 novel IT, Mike Hanlon is the heart and memory of the Losers Club. In the novel, Mike encounters Pennywise in 1958 when he was 12 years old. It will be a shame to the fans if I tell them that Pennywise used to use the citizens of Derry’s worst fear for his leverage and turn it into a never-ending nightmare. For Mike it was no different, he encountered Pennywise at Kitchener Ironworks where he used to work. He had a memory of getting pecked by a crow when he was 6 months old. Pennywise used this particular memory. Mike Hanlon saw a huge bird trying to peck him again, he did not give away to the trance, instead he hid in the smokestack barely escaping the huge creature’s claws.
We think that Mike’s father Will Hanlon was the indispensable catalyst in Mike being who he is. Will Hanlon was the key influence, being a farmer and former soldier, he often shared stories of evil living among them. The stories included the burning of the black spot among others. The black spot as the name suggests was a jazz club for black soldiers which was burned down by white supremacists. Will Hanlon even kept a scrapbook of photos and clippings. This scrapbook becomes Mike’s obsession, marking his role as the group’s historian. Through these clippings and his time at the library, he learns about all the tragedies that have taken place in Derry. To name a few, the Ironworks explosion tragedy and the child murders. One very important discovery he made related to child murders was that it happened in a cycle of 27 years coinciding with Pennywise’s appearance.
Mike Hanlon is also very dutiful. Want to know how? Keep listening. After the first battle with Pennywise, everyone moves on with their lives and forgets their childhood trauma but not Mike. He stayed behind. He worked as a head librarian at Derry’s library. He becomes the lighthouse keeper keeping a close eye on the return of Pennywise. The members of the losers’ club made an oath after the first battle that they would come back together and fight Pennywise again when he will return in 27 years. When the child murders started again, Mike called everyone back to Derry, fulfilling their childhood oath.
Smart intellect doesn’t keep you away from harm for long. The same was the case with Mike as well. Tragically, Mike gets nearly killed when Henry stabs him in the leg. Yes! Harry! He escaped from the asylum. So now Mike is hospitalised. But he isn’t safe yet. He was attacked again, while he was at the hospital by the nurse. The nurse had no beef, she was under the influence of Pennywise. Brave Mike fights her off. Although Mike was not in the final battle in the sewers physically because he was injured, he still had a huge part to play in the victory of the Losers through his research and courage.
Mike Hanlon in the 1990 Miniseries
The 1990 IT miniseries was directed by Tommy Lee Wallace. The role of Mike Hanlon was played by two actors, Marlon Taylor as a young Mike and Tim Reid as the adult Mike Hanlon. This adaptation was very close to the novel, in the miniseries, Mike Hanlon was again the only black kid in Derry. He was again facing terrors on both fronts, through Pennywise and through the towns’ racist prejudice. But there was one scene that stood out, which was not part of the novel. In that scene, as Mike was being bullied by Henry’s boys to bully him, the situation was interrupted by an adult.
Another change in the miniseries was the living situation. In the miniseries, Mike lives with his parents on a farm. They inherited the farm from Mike’s grandfather. Mike being terrorised by the huge bird remains the same in the miniseries, Henry being the pain in the ass all the time also did not change for Mike and he still meets the losers and joins their club after they rescue him from Henry and his gang. As an adult, Tom Reid played Mike as a calm and reflective librarian who stayed back as an anchor for the Losers, carefully keeping a watch over Derry. As soon as the killings resurfaced he alerted the Losers to unite against the evil.
The black spot story is not given much importance, it’s only briefly mentioned. The attack by Henry after he escapes the asylum and the nurse trying to kill Mike are included as mentioned in the novel but Mike’s role is simplified. Tom Reid got special recognition for the way he brought Mike on screen, It was a fresh and strong performance.
Mike Hanlon in Movies
In the movies, directed by Andy Muschietti in 2017 and 2019 the character of young Mike Hanlon is played by Chosen Jacobs and adult Mike Hanlon by Isaiah Mustafa. These movies take a different approach to Mike Hanlon’s character, making significant changes in Mike’s backstory.
In the first IT movie released in 2017, the movie is set in 1989. In this movie, Mike’s parents are dead, they died in a house fire. Same as the novel. But this memory becomes Mike’s deepest fear. Pennywise uses this memory to bully and scare him. Pennywise creates an illusion of his parents burning and pounding on the closed door for help. Worst fear coming alive right? Mike grew up on a sheep farm, raised by his grandfather. He is forced to slaughter animals with a bolt gun every day. He uses this same bolt gun against Pennywise. Metaphorical isn’t?
The movie strips away the best of Mike Hanlon. Like in the novel he was the researcher of Derry’s history for the group but it’s all taken away by the character of Ben Hanscom. All this makes Mike’s character a bit sidelined. Even the racism he faced in Derry is downplayed, Henry’s bullying is generalised rather than being explicitly racial like in the novel. This softened the impact of Mike’s struggles, being a black kid in a small prejudiced town making it look very bland. Even the fans were not on board because it did not land well with them, what they did to his character.
In the second movie, IT Chapter Two, released in 2019 the movie is set in 2016. Mike’s character is a wreck. He is struggling, with the trauma of being left behind and also alone in Derry. He is a librarian like in the book. The director made him look like a librarian junkie. Another very sad and distinct change in the movie was that the movie suggested that Mike’s parents were drug addicts which took away the whole loving and stable family tag from the Hanlon family. A very harmful stereotype from the creators right? They do try to undo it though, by putting a scene where it’s shown that Pennywise fabricated the whole drug addict narrative but that does not undo the damage which has already been done to the movie. This is not all, it wasn’t all bad. There was a step up too. In the movie Mike has a bigger role in the final battle, he leads the losers into Pennywise’s lair which is so much better than the hospitalised Mike version.
Mike Hanlon in Stephen King’s wider Mythos
Mike Hanlon’s presence in Stephan King’s universe is not boxed inside the IT franchise, it extends beyond the IT multiverse. Stephen King uses Derry, Maine repeatedly in his stories and Mike is tied to Derry’s dark legacy.
Like in Insomnia, another novel by Stephan King which came out in 1994, Mike Hanlon appears as a head librarian. Also set in Derry, Maine Mike is the head librarian of Derry Library and helps the main protagonist of the novel, Ralph Roberts find a book on sleep disorders. It’s not much but it establishes Mike Hanlon as Derry’s legacy keeper or knowledge keeper.
In another book, 11/22/63 Jake Epping visits Derry and meets young Beverly and Richie with Mike indirectly being talked about as the library kid.
In another reference, he is also mentioned in Dreamcatcher tying him tightly to Derry’s cursed history. His roles aren’t brief, they are small, often just a name drop but his role as a black kid fighting evil in a haunted town speaks volumes. Fans also had a problem with this, because characters like him and Dick Hallorann from the shining who also by the way saves Mike’s father from black spot fire, are often sidelined. Fans speculate that their characters have been reduced to being a wise black figure guiding white protagonists into heroism.
Marvelous Verdict
That’s all from our side for Mike Hanlon, we think he is a hero and should be celebrated more than he is being celebrated! What’s your take on his character? Do you think the movie Mike Hanlon does justice to the novel Mike Hanlon or does the movie Mike Hanlon better than the novel? Confused? Scroll back and listen to the question again! Until then keep your drains closed, take yourself to the library to become Mike Smart and don’t let Pennywise take over your brain!
