The Stranger Things universe is expanding again! Netflix has just greenlit a new animated series set within the trippy 80s sci-fi world created by Matt and Ross Duffer. The currently untitled series is already being developed by Flying Bark Productions with Erick Robles attached as an executive producer. While little is known about the plot or characters involved with the upcoming series, the Duffer brothers shared a statement along with the announcement saying that the new show is inspired by classic "Saturday morning cartoons."
“We’ve always dreamed of an animated Stranger Things in the vein of the Saturday morning cartoons that we grew up loving, and to see this dream realized has been absolutely thrilling. We couldn’t be more blown away by what Eric Robles and his team have come up with -- the scripts and artwork are incredible, and we can’t wait to share more with you! The adventure continues…”
Though further details on the animated series are currently under wraps, the Duffer brothers will return as executive producers on the series via their Upside Down Pictures banner, while frequent Stranger Things director Shawn Levy and Dan Cohen also executive produce for 21 laps.
Stranger Things Flagship Series Begins Filming Season 5 This Summer
Netflix's flagship sci-fi series, Stranger Things, follows a group of teens and a few of their parents as they come face to face with a dark secret lurking beneath the quiet town of Hawkins, Indiana. Millie Bobby Brown stars as Eleven, a young girl with telekinetic powers who may just be the key to saving the world. Following the fourth season, which hit the streamer last summer, Collider's own Steve Weintraub sat down with the Duffer brothers to chat about what we can expect from the series in Season 5. They told us that Season 5 would be going 100MPH from the start, zooming past the typical happy normalcy that opens each season. They also said that the series' final season would feature many of the dynamics they focused on in the show's first season, and star Noah Schnapp told Forbes that the series "started with Will, and it'll end with Will." According to Schnapp, the series is set to begin filming Season 5 in May, with David Harbour, who plays Jim Hopper, saying he's expecting to return to set in June.
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Stranger Things Stage Production to Open Next Winter
The new animated series isn't the only expansion of the Stranger Things universe that's been announced in recent months. A Stranger Things stage play titled Stranger Things: The First Shadow is officially set to open in London's West End in December. The production will serve as a prequel to the popular Netflix series, taking fans back to Hawkins in 1959 when Hopper and Joyce Byers née Maldonado (Winona Ryder) were enrolled in high school and Henry Creel (Jamie Campbell Bower) was a new student with a dark secret. While the cast of The First Shadow has yet to be announced, tickets are already on sale.
While we wait for more news on the Stranger Things animated series and Season 5 of the live-action original, you can check out our conversation with the Duffers down below.