Netflix’s internal viewing numbers are even more mysterious than the Upside Down, but it was clear very quickly that Stranger Things was one of the most popular original series that Netflix has ever run. And that’s why Netflix didn’t waste much time before pulling the trigger and ordering a second season!
This morning, Netflix announced that Stranger Things will get a nine-episode second season in 2017, which means that pre-production will likely begin soon. Despite rumors that the show might go the anthology route, series creators Matt and Ross Duffer confirmed to Entertainment Weekly that the story will pick up in 1984, roughly a year after the events of the first season.
“I don’t think we ever thought anthology,” said Ross Duffer. “I think we talked like a larger time jump where the kids are older now and it’s a different decade. That’s something we batted around from the very beginning. But for us, there’s still more story here, there’s still things that are unresolved.”
As part of the announcement, Netflix dropped an enigmatic video which teased the new season and hinted at a few of the new characters to come.
Related: ‘Stranger Things’ Creators Reveal Fate of Two Characters
“There’s going to be a lot of new and interesting dynamics that we didn’t see in season 1,” added Matt Duffer, who went on to cite James Cameron’s Terminator 2 and Aliens as the Duffers’ inspiration for getting the second season right. “I know movie sequels get a lot of s***, but the ones we look up to aspire to pivot and do something different. There’s Temple of Doom, Aliens, Terminator 2. I guess a lot of this is James Cameron. But he’s brilliant. And I think one of the reasons his sequels are as successful as they are is he makes them feel very different without losing what we loved about the original. So I think we kinda looked to him and what he does and tried to capture a little bit of the magic of his work.”
Netflix hasn’t revealed when the new season of Stranger Things will premiere, but given the success it enjoyed this summer, a July 2017 release seems likely.
What do you think will happen in the new season? Share your theories below!