Halloween has come with a big surprise for IT: Welcome to Derry, fans! To treat the fans, HBO Max released a special thirty-minute episode titled "A Story of Derry" without prior notice. The surprise release gave Stephen King fans something extra to enjoy on Halloween, and the special soon became one of the day's biggest talking points.The episode takes viewers hundreds of years back, long before Pennywise came into the picture. According to Comic Book Club, the story follows three young children who decide to explore the Western Wood. However, their little adventure takes a scary turn when they come across an ancient spirit hiding in the woods. It is directed by Tazbah Chavez, famous for Reservation Dogs and Accused. More on the story below.IT: Welcome to Derry's Halloween special surprises fans with 'A Story of Derry' View this post on Instagram Instagram PostThe announcement of IT: Welcome to Derry's Halloween special episode titled A Story of Derry was made on HBO Max's social media on October 31. The caption of the post read:"IT's a surprise Halloween treat."The special takes its viewers way back in time, long before the events of the main series. Right at the beginning, a title card tells viewers this is a story children were never told. At the time, people told a less scary version of the story and kept the truth hidden. Now, through the Halloween special episode, "A Story of Derry," what actually happened is revealed.TheWorldOfPennywise @Pennywisefan111LINKOur first look at “ Maturin “ the benevolent, ancient cosmic deity in Stephen King’s shared multiverse.His first official appearance in the surprise Halloween special episode (A Story of Derry) of IT: Welcome to Derry.#ITWelcomeToDerry #HalloweenThe special also gives viewers something Stephen King fans have been waiting to see for a long time: Maturin. The Halloween episode finally brings Maturin to the screen. Maturin is known as a kind and powerful being, and his appearance gives viewers a better look at the forces of good and evil that have been part of Derry's world for a very long time.The episode also brings Zahn McClarnon into the story as an Indigenous warrior who makes a dagger that IT fears. His role adds more to what we already learned in Season 1 about the reason the creature cannot get out of Derry. However, unlike the main series, this special doesn't feature Bill Skarsgård as Pennywise.Where to watch IT: Welcome to Derry's Halloween special?A still from the IT: Welcome to Derry trailer (Image via YouTube/@HBO Max)The special episode of IT: Welcome to Derry, titled "A Story of Derry," was released on HBO Max on October 31. Interested viewers can watch the episode on the streaming platform. It has a reported runtime of half an hour.The reported cast of the episode includes Zahn McClarnon, Kiawentiio, Kimberly Guerrero, Isabel Deroy-Olson, Michael Podemski-Bedard, Morningstar Angeline, and Thosh Collins.Earlier this year in August, Deadline reported that the series has been renewed for another season, with Brad Caleb Kane serving as the showrunner. Speaking of IT: Welcome to Derry Season 2, Kane told Entertainment Weekly that the new season will have a different setting and feel. He revealed that the story will take place in 1935, during the Great Depression. He added:"Beyond that, I can’t talk about it, but you can imagine a Warner Bros. gangster picture through the lens of Pennywise and Stephen King. That’s kind of what we’re doing."As of now, the exact release date of IT: Welcome to Derry Season 2 has not been confirmed. The new Halloween special gives viewers another look at Derry's past, this time going back hundreds of years before Pennywise.Also Read: The Celebrity Traitors UK fans slam James Acaster over his reluctance to embrace the game