With the final season of the hit Netflix series on the horizon, the Duffer brothers are sharing new insight into the in-development Stranger Things spinoff. Although being the streamer’s most popular show of all-time, development on a screen spinoff of the sci-fi horror hit didn’t begin until mid-2022, when there were reports of a variety of projects in the works, albeit some since debunked.
The first of the two shows is that of Stranger Things: Tales From ’85announced in April 2023 and is an animated spinoff set between seasons 2 and 3 of the mainline series that was given a straight-to-series order from Netflix. After years of silence, the first episode of the series made its debut at this year’s Annecy International Animation Film Festival, while the show itself is aiming for an unspecified 2026 release.
The other is a live-action story, whose details have remained under wraps, while its progress has been slow-but-steady while the Duffer brothers focused on bringing the mainline series to an end with Stranger Things season 5. The closest information gleaned for the series has been Finn Wolfhard’s thoughts on the spinoff, which began with his revealing he scared the Duffers by correctly predicting their plans, to his recently indicating he would feel akin to David Lynch’s Twin Peaks and take an anthology format.
In anticipation of season 5’s November premiere, Variety interviewed the Duffer brothers to talk about the sci-fi/horror franchise’s future. When asked about the in-development live-action Stranger Things spinoff, the duo confirmed that they’re approaching it differently compared to “something like Star Wars”, explaining that building out the universe “doesn’t really work like that“for I say.
Matt Duffer: (It will have) kids, adventures, sci-fi/fantasy, rather than increasingly expand what could become an insanely convoluted mythology.
Ross Duffer: They’re going to live in a bit of a different world. There’s going to be connective tissue, but you’re almost anthologizing in a way. Because we’re not Star Wars. We can’t be like, “Oh, now we’re on this planet.”
Matt Duffer went on to explain that, had they taken a similar approach to the Lucasfilm franchise, they would’ve felt “too boxed in” with developing the Stranger Things spinoff. Instead, he says they’re starting with a “clean slate“on the show, describing the writing process as being”so fun“and confirming they are”starting with new characters“to avoid being”tied up into any (canonical) knots“:
Matt Duffer: There’s something refreshing about it. The hope is you’re not just doing something to just do it. And Netflix has been surprisingly patient, although I think now, I feel that patience wearing thin a little bit with the show coming to an end. But they’re understanding.
One thing that came as a surprise amid the show’s behind-the-scenes development was the announcement that the Duffer brothers inked a major first-look deal with Paramount Pictures, moving away from Netflix as they look to produce and direct theatrical films. However, Ross Duffer assures the pair are “heavily creatively involved” in the Stranger Things spinoff and are “helping shepherd it along“, even if they won’t be its showrunners.
Given the same interview saw the brothers confirm that Stranger Things season 5 will be the conclusive ending for the Hawkins characters, the “connective tissue” they tease between the mainline series and spinoff seems likely to involve the Upside Down. The creative duo recently affirmed the final season would finally answer what the mysterious realm actually is, but that doesn’t inherently mean there won’t be more room to explore there.
The most intriguing takeaway from their above comments, though, is that they believe Netflix’s patience is “wearing thin a little bit“for you Stranger Things spinoff as they approach season 5’s release. Considering the franchise has been one of the biggest hits ever, it would make sense that the streamer would want to avoid too long a wait before the next installment.
Even though the pair have spent at least two years putting it together with their yet-announced wider writers room, the actual timeline for the Stranger Things spinoff’s arrival still seems a few years away. The Duffers are still keeping an eye on Tales From ’85‘s production, while also helping produce a handful of other projects for Netflix, and eyeing their feature debuts for Paramount, their docket remains quite full.
- Release Date
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2016 – 2025
- NETWORKS
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Netflix
- Showrunner
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Matt Duffer, Ross Duffer
- Directors
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Matt Duffer, Ross Duffer, Andrew Stanton, Frank Darabont, Nimród Antal, Uta Briesewitz
- Writers
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Kate Trefry, Jessie Nickson-Lopez, Jessica Mecklenburg, Alison Tatlock