Stranger Things

Stranger Things, a science-fiction horror television show that debuted on July 15, 2016, and instantly captured viewers’ imaginations. A Netflix original, it was created by identical twin brothers Matt and Ross Duffer (professionally known as the Duffer Brothers). With a plot involving supernatural horror, Cold War-era government conspiracies, and teen adventures, Stranger Things gained critical acclaim and was soon propelled into the pop culture zeitgeist.

Creators and background

The Duffer Brothers began their career in filmmaking after graduating from Chapman University’s Dodge College of Film and Media Arts in 2007. Before Stranger Things they wrote screenplays for several episodes of the psychological horror series Wayward Pines (2015–16) and wrote and directed the thriller Hidden (2015). Keen on a personal passion project, the Duffer Brothers began working on a script to sell to a production studio. They created Stranger Things, inspired by the works of director Steven Spielberg, writers such as Stephen King and George R.R. Martin, and films including A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) and The Goonies (1985). After being rejected by several studios, the Stranger Things script was picked up by streaming giant Netflix. The Duffer Brothers have been the showrunners for the series, writing and directing most of the episodes. The show’s fifth and final season aired in late 2025.

Characters

The main roles in the series include:

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• Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown): A girl (whose real name is Jane) with telekinetic powers, Eleven escapes a government lab and becomes key to battling the threats from an alternate dimension called the Upside Down.
• Mike Wheeler (Finn Wolfhard): A thoughtful and loyal friend, Mike becomes emotionally close to Eleven and leads the group of kids who are central to the storyline.
• Joyce Byers (Winona Ryder): Mother to Jonathan and Will, Joyce is a fiercely determined woman who endures immense loss and becomes deeply involved in the supernatural events of Hawkins, the fictional town in Indiana, in which most of the story is set.
• Jim Hopper (David Harbour): The gruff but brave Hawkins police chief, Hopper evolves into a protective father figure.
• Dustin Henderson (Gaten Matarazzo): The intelligent, loyal, and resourceful member of the friend group with an interest in science and technology, Dustin also brings comic relief.
• Lucas Sinclair (Caleb McLaughlin): A pragmatic and courageous teen, Lucas balances his skepticism with strong loyalty to his friends.
• Will Byers (Noah Schnapp): A sensitive and artistic boy, Will sets the story in motion when he mysteriously disappears in season one.
• Max Mayfield (Sadie Sink): A strong-willed and athletic girl, Max struggles with personal trauma while forming close bonds with the group.
• Nancy Wheeler (Natalia Dyer): Mike’s older sister Nancy is a determined and brave high school student who starts working for a local newspaper and also becomes involved in investigating the dark secrets of Hawkins.
• Jonathan Byers (Charlie Heaton): A quiet, introspective teen, Jonathan is particularly protective toward his brother, Will, and girlfriend, Nancy.
• Steve Harrington (Joe Keery): A former high-school jock, Steve matures into a heroic and beloved babysitter-figure to the younger characters.
• Robin Buckley (Maya Hawke): A witty and perceptive teenager, Robin works with Steve at the mall and becomes a key ally in uncovering conspiracies.
• Erica Sinclair (Priah Ferguson): Lucas’s sassy and clever younger sister Erica proves unexpectedly useful in solving supernatural mysteries.
• Murray Bauman (Brett Gelman): A paranoid yet insightful conspiracy theorist, Murray assists the group with his sharp intellect and Russian fluency.
• Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower): The Upside Down’s powerful and sinister monstrous entity, Vecna was originally named Henry Creel and called One at the Hawkins lab.
• Dr. Martin Brenner (Matthew Modine): The ruthless head of the Hawkins lab, Brenner psychologically manipulates and experiments on children with special powers, particularly Eleven, who calls him “Papa.”

Setting and story

Seasons two, three, and four

Filming Hotspots

Stranger Things was filmed almost entirely around Atlanta, where many key locations stand in for the fictional town of Hawkins, Indiana. The iconic Hawkins National Laboratory was actually the former Georgia Mental Health Institute, also known as Emory University’s Briarcliff Building A, which served as the cold, Brutalist backdrop for the secretive lab scenes. Many of the scenes set in Lenora Hills, California, are actually shot in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Meanwhile, scenes of the Russian prison where Hopper is held in season four were shot at the real-life Lukiškės Prison in Vilnius, Lithuania, doubling as the show’s bleak Siberian gulag.

Subsequent seasons expand the narrative while maintaining the show’s 1980s setting and eerie, retro tone. As Hawkins becomes increasingly entangled with the Upside Down, characters face new threats from government forces and monstrous entities, all while navigating the challenges of adolescence and young adulthood.

Although the first season ends with Eleven sacrificing herself to save her friends, she returns in subsequent seasons and drives much of the plot through the series. It turns out that she had slipped into the Upside Down, and upon her return, she hides out with police officer Hopper. Will continues to have haunting dreams of the Upside Down, as a dangerous entity named the Mind Flayer begins influencing him. New threats in the form of Demodogs—large doglike creatures with unique flower-shaped mouths lined with sharp teeth—start terrorizing Hawkins.

The third season opens on a more upbeat note with the opening of the new Starcourt Mall in Hawkins. Underneath, however, Russian agents secretly build a machine to reopen the Upside Down portal, triggering new chaos. In season four the scene changes between Hawkins, a Russian prison, and another fictional town, Lenora Hills, California. El (short for Eleven) is living with the Byers family in Lenora Hills, Hopper is held captive in a Russian prison, and the rest of the gang is back in Hawkins. Fresh supernatural threats start bubbling up in Hawkins, culminating in the appearance of Vecna, a distorted humanoid creature with a body covered in vines.

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Reception

Stranger Things has become one of Netflix’s most successful original series. Within the first 35 days of its release, season one had about 14 million views. The popularity of the series kept growing with each season and hit more than 140 million views in the first 91 days after the release of season four (2022). It was the most streamed show in 2022, with audiences spending 52 billion minutes watching it. The fourth season had been delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic, but that reportedly allowed the creators time to refine the script, enhancing the season’s storytelling and production value. The series has maintained a rating of more than 90 percent on the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes.

Cultural impact

The series has had significant cultural and commercial impact. Its retro aesthetic and prominent product placements sparked renewed interest in 1980s brands and media. For example, Eleven’s love for Eggo waffles resulted in a sales increase for the brand, leading to a promotional partnership including a Super Bowl commercial. Similarly, the inclusion of the fantasy role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons led to a spike in interest in the game. The series also renewed interest in several 1980s songs. For example, after being featured in season four, Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill” and Metallica’s “Master of Puppets” saw massive resurgences in streaming and chart positions decades after their original releases.

The success of the show has also led to the expansion of the franchise with books, graphic novels, themed board games, and video games. Additionally, Netflix announced a planned spinoff series. The show has also been celebrated in theme park attractions, including haunted house experiences at Universal Studios’ Halloween Horror Nights.

Ahead of the launch of season five, several product collaborations arrived. Chips Ahoy! announced a special Stranger Things cookie inspired by the Upside Down. LEGO plans to launch a Brickheadz set featuring Mike, Lucas, Will, and Dustin. Palermo’s Surfer Boy Pizza introduced retro packaging and four flavors, each box containing rare collectible holographic stickers.

Awards

The series has been nominated for and won a multitude of awards, including Primetime Emmy Awards, Screen Actors Guild Awards, and Saturn Awards. The first four seasons received 57 Emmy nominations, winning 12 awards, including outstanding sound editing for a series, outstanding casting for a drama series, outstanding sound mixing, and outstanding prosthetic makeup.