Everything We Know About the Upcoming ‘Stranger Things’ Spinoff

Credit: Chelsea Lauren/Shutterstock

Everything We Know About the Upcoming 'Stranger Things' Spinoff

Not the end. As viewers prepare for the fifth and final season of Stranger Things, creators Matt and Ross Duffer announced that the Upside Down might not be closing its gates yet. In February 2022, the writing team reflected on the future of Stranger Things in an open letter to the fans. “Seven years ago, we planned out the complete story arc for Stranger Things,” they stated via the show's official social media platforms. “At the time, we predicted the story would last four to five seasons. It proved too large to tell in four but — as you’ll see for yourselves — we are now hurtling toward our finale. Season 4 will be the penultimate season; season 5 will be the last.” The executive producers revealed that there were plans to further explore the Stranger Things universe. “There are still many more exciting stories to tell within the world of Stranger Things: new mysteries, new adventures, new unexpected heroes," the message concluded. "But first, we hope that you stay with us as we finish this tale of a powerful girl named Eleven and her brave friends, of a broken police chief and a ferocious mom, of a small town called Hawkins and an alternate dimension known only as the Upside Down.” The science fiction series originally debuted on Netflix in 2016. Viewers were captivated by the mysterious town of Hawkins, Indiana, and the monsters that were unleashed after another world was opened in season 1. Through the years, fans watched their favorite characters fall in love, grow up and continue to come together to fight the evil from the Upside Down. Ahead of the show's season 4 premiere, director Shawn Levy teased the highly anticipated conclusion for the hit series. "No one is winging it. Honestly, I think that the Duffer brothers have [an idea of how the show end] and they have teased it for me over the past six and a half years. But they keep things very private amongst themselves until it is fully formed," Levy exclusively told Us Weekly in May 2022. "Then they bring it to me and then we take the next steps. It is very, very clear now and it became clear for a while now that we have one season more that feels worth it and reliably amazing." At the time, Levy pointed out that the creators and producers behind Stranger Things wanted to wrap up its story lines in an organic way. "We don't want to be one of those shows that outstays its welcome and is flailing while it searches for a way to stick the landing," he added. "We really want to stick the landing. I feel like we have been able to do that every season and we also want to do it for the series." Scroll down for everything we know about the Stranger Things spinoff: [podcast_block]

Credit: Chelsea Lauren/Shutterstock

Everything We Know About the Upcoming 'Stranger Things' Spinoff

Not the end. As viewers prepare for the fifth and final season of Stranger Things, creators Matt and Ross Duffer announced that the Upside Down might not be closing its gates yet. In February 2022, the writing team reflected on the future of Stranger Things in an open letter to the fans. “Seven years ago, we planned out the complete story arc for Stranger Things,” they stated via the show's official social media platforms. “At the time, we predicted the story would last four to five seasons. It proved too large to tell in four but — as you’ll see for yourselves — we are now hurtling toward our finale. Season 4 will be the penultimate season; season 5 will be the last.” The executive producers revealed that there were plans to further explore the Stranger Things universe. “There are still many more exciting stories to tell within the world of Stranger Things: new mysteries, new adventures, new unexpected heroes," the message concluded. "But first, we hope that you stay with us as we finish this tale of a powerful girl named Eleven and her brave friends, of a broken police chief and a ferocious mom, of a small town called Hawkins and an alternate dimension known only as the Upside Down.” The science fiction series originally debuted on Netflix in 2016. Viewers were captivated by the mysterious town of Hawkins, Indiana, and the monsters that were unleashed after another world was opened in season 1. Through the years, fans watched their favorite characters fall in love, grow up and continue to come together to fight the evil from the Upside Down. Ahead of the show's season 4 premiere, director Shawn Levy teased the highly anticipated conclusion for the hit series. "No one is winging it. Honestly, I think that the Duffer brothers have [an idea of how the show end] and they have teased it for me over the past six and a half years. But they keep things very private amongst themselves until it is fully formed," Levy exclusively told Us Weekly in May 2022. "Then they bring it to me and then we take the next steps. It is very, very clear now and it became clear for a while now that we have one season more that feels worth it and reliably amazing." At the time, Levy pointed out that the creators and producers behind Stranger Things wanted to wrap up its story lines in an organic way. "We don't want to be one of those shows that outstays its welcome and is flailing while it searches for a way to stick the landing," he added. "We really want to stick the landing. I feel like we have been able to do that every season and we also want to do it for the series." Scroll down for everything we know about the Stranger Things spinoff: [podcast_block]

Credit: Chelsea Lauren/Shutterstock

How Involved Will the Duffer Brothers Be?

"So we have an idea but the idea is to ultimately pass the baton to someone else who is hopefully talented and passionate. Even the idea of Ross and I doing a pilot and then leaving it, it just feels silly to me. You need to be there from the beginning to the end. We need to find a partner to help us with that," Matt explained during an episode of the "Happy Sad Confused" podcast in July 2022. "I don't want to do another decade in the Stranger Things universe. [But] we do want to be very involved."

Credit: Jackson Davis/Netflix

Will the Spinoff Connect to 'Stranger Things'?

"It is 1000 percent different from [Stranger Things]. It is not following [any of the main characters]. That is not interesting to me because I feel like we have done all that," the writing duo shared on the "Happy Sad Confused" podcast. "It is very different. But it shares a connection with Stranger Things and the most connective tissue is the storytelling sensibility of it. There is story that connects to Stranger Things."

Credit: Courtesy of Netflix

Will It Exist in the Same Universe?

The Duffer brothers have confirmed that they are currently working on the early stages of the spinoff. The series would presumably exist in the same universe, with Stranger Things previously teasing more stories about Hawkins Lab test subjects in season 2.

Credit: Courtesy of Netflix

What Is It About?

During an interview with Variety, the writing duo opened up about their plans for the Stranger Things future.

“We do have an idea for a spinoff that we’re super excited about, but we haven’t told anyone the idea yet, much less written it. We think everyone — including Netflix — will be surprised when they hear the concept, because it’s very, very different," they said in May 2022. "But somehow Finn Wolfhard — who is one crazy smart kid — correctly guessed what it was going to be about. But aside from Finn [who plays Mike Wheeler], no one else knows!”

Credit: Courtesy of Netflix

Would the 'Stranger Things' Cast Make Cameos?

In May 2022, Wolfhard revealed that he wasn't ruling out an appearance in the spinoff. "I think if it was in 10 years or something like that, and there was a movie or a limited series, I think that'd be kind of cool," the It actor told Digital Spy.

His costar Charlie Heaton noted that he couldn't picture joining another series in the same universe yet. "It'd be kind of weird to have a spinoff [now], you know?" the musician added.

Credit: Tina Rowden/Netflix

What Can Fans Expect?

During an interview with Variety in June 2022, the Duffer Brothers hinted they would "probably" start working on the untitled project after the fifth and final season of Stranger Things.

"There's a version of it developing in parallel [to season 5], but they would never shoot it parallel," Ross noted. "I think actually we're going to start delving into that soon as we're winding down and finishing these visual effects, Matt and I are going to start getting into it."

Matt, for his part, clarified their approach to the spinoff. "The reason we haven't done anything is just because you don't want to be doing it for the wrong reasons, and it was just like, 'Is this something I would want to make regardless of it being related to Stranger Things or not?' And definitely," he said. "Even if we took the Stranger Things title off of it, I'm so, so excited about it. But it is not — It's going to be different than what anyone is expecting, including Netflix."