Stranger Things is debuting its fourth season later this week, and ending with its fifth. The child stars on the show are growing up, so it’s probably best to finish out this coming-of-age story before they become full-fledged adults.
However, that’s not the say the franchise couldn’t live on in a spinoff. The “Stranger Things Universe” has already expanded beyond the TV show. Dark Horse has been publishing comics set within the continuity for years. For instance, there’s The Other Side, which explains how Will (Noah Schnapp) survived his first stint in the Upside Down in season 1. Then there’s Science Camp, a comic all about how Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo) met his girlfriend Suzie (Gabriella Pizzolo).
Netflix could look to the comics for potential spinoff ideas, but it sounds like creators Matt and Ross Duffer have their own ideas for how the franchise might continue. “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,” they told Variety. “We think everyone — including Netflix — will be surprised when they hear the concept because it’s very, very different.”
Finn Wolfhard (Mike) correctly guess the Stranger Things spinoff
Well, the Duffers would’ve liked to have kept their idea a secret, if it weren’t for those meddling kids. Apparently, star Finn Wolfhard (Mike) figured it out. “Somehow Finn Wolfhard — who is one crazy smart kid — correctly guessed what it was going to be about,” the Duffers said. “But aside from Finn, no one else knows!”
There are plenty of avenues to explore with spinoffs. Perhaps the most obvious choice would be a series exploring the adventures of some of the other kids gifted with special powers thanks to Dr. Brenner’s experiments in the Hawkins National Laboratory. The mystery of the Hawkins Laboratory is key to the show. Season 4 even kicks off with a flashback to a key moment there:
Volume I of Stranger Things season 4 arrives on Netflix on May 27; Volume II drops on the streamer on July 1. There are only nine episodes, but they all have a runtime of over an hour. The season finale is feature-length, clocking in at over two and a half hours. Whoa!
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