The Meaning Behind Sadie’s Clothespin Line in ‘11.22.63’: A Backstory Exploration
Almost ten years after its debut on Hulu, 11.22.63 has officially made its way to Netflix, bringing the acclaimed miniseries to a fresh audience.
This 2016 sci-fi thriller is adapted from Stephen King‘s bestselling novel, 11/22/63, published in 2011. It centers around Jake Epping (played by James Franco), a recently divorced high school English teacher from Maine, who embarks on a journey back in time to avert the assassination of President John F. Kennedy on November 22, 1963.
In the fourth episode, “The Eyes of Texas,” Jake starts a relationship with librarian Sadie Dunhill (Sarah Gadon), who reveals to him the abusive history with her ex-husband, Johnny Clayton (T. R. Knight).
“When I met Johnny, I thought he was the most charming man I’d ever met,” she shares. “We’d never done much physically. I just thought he was old-fashioned.”
With tears in her eyes, Sadie reveals to Jake the trauma stemming from her wedding night with Johnny.
“He got real tense. Didn’t want to kiss me. He just asked me to close my eyes, so I did,” she remembers. “And then he took my hand and put it on himself, and I screamed because he had a clothespin on him. I didn’t know what to say, so I laughed, and then he hit me, so I started crying, and he hit me again.”
Sadie does not provide more context for her “clothespin” comment, leaving many viewers puzzled by its disturbing backstory.
Before the sexual revolution of the ’60s, some conservative mothers used clothespins on their sons’ penises to discourage masturbation. However, in 11.22.63, this painful practice from Johnny’s upbringing ultimately transforms into a fetish.
“Clearly this is someone who’s got some stuff to work through. He’s got some issues,” Knight, 52, shared with TV Guide in 2016. “There was a lot of repression and a lot of oppression going on, clearly, at that time. And sadly, some of it still exists. But I think he’s on a different level. … Clearly he’s so severely damaged that he’s seemingly beyond help. He has his own set of rules to justify the way his mind works, which is simply not accurate. It’s not right.”
King, 78, also incorporated the clothespin discussion in the 11/22/63 novel. The renowned horror author has indicated that he drew inspiration from reading about notorious serial killer Ted Bundy‘s tumultuous childhood.
“I believe in evil, but all my life I’ve fluctuated between whether there’s an external force that seeks to destroy us from the inside out, or if it’s all rooted in genetics and environment,” King expressed in a 2014 interview with Rolling Stone.
He elaborated, “When you look at someone like Ted Bundy, who tormented and murdered numerous women and even returned to have sexual encounters with the deceased, I don’t think you can attribute that solely to his upbringing, such as a clothespin incident during childhood. That behavior is hardwired. Evil resides within us. The older I grow, the less I see an external devilish influence; it originates from people. If we don’t confront this issue, we will inevitably self-destruct.”
11.22.63 is currently available for streaming on Netflix.
