Though the buzz over Netflix's original series Stranger Things has lessened a bit since its debut this summer, creators Matt and Ross Duffer are riding the wave of popularity right into Season 2. In actuality, the Duffer Bros. have had the second season's story pretty much locked down from the earliest of days, well before audiences around the world got a chance to meet Eleven and visit the Upside Down. Now, the conversation has turned to what will happen in the upcoming season and just how much more we'll get to explore in Hawkins, Indiana.

In a chat with THR, the Duffer Brothers gave earnest but guarded teases in response to questions about their story-breaking process, the previously released teaser video, working with the young cast, and the decision to run a nine-episode second season. The biggest reveal here is that the Duffer Bros. have been quite active within the growing fan community, so there's a chance that, if you have a theory that's been floating around the internet, they might have already seen it. Check out their responses below.

The second season of Stranger Things has been in the works since before the first season even premiered, but only Netflix execs and the Duffer Bros. were in on it:

Matt: They greenlit the second season before we even premiered. So when everyone was going, "Is there going to be a second season?" we had been writing the entire time. So we’ve been working on this almost all summer.

 

Ross: It drove me crazy. "Please, can't we just tell everyone we’re doing a second season?"

 

Matt: Netflix has its mysterious ways, but it actually ended up working because it had built up to this fever pitch. I guess that’s what they were intending to do all the time.

Those titles that popped up in the teaser video announcing a second season? Don't expect them to be the official ones that show up in 2017. But it seems some redditors may have cobbled together certain plot points nonetheless:

Matt: Netflix had another teaser, but it was about going back to stuff that had happened already. I thought it wasn’t exciting enough, and we wanted to provide some hint of where we were going in season two without giving anything away. I do think some of the titles will change. There were titles we didn’t want to put on there because we felt like it would give too much away. The whole season was already broken when we did this.

 

Ross: So we did have a lot that we could tease.

 

Matt: Even if they aren't the final chapter titles, everything in that teaser is major. But they’re ambiguous enough that no one is going to be able to figure it out. Some of the fan theories online are amazing. Most are wrong, but I’ve read a few that are right or very close. Is it Reddit? Some of those people have figured stuff out based off of the chapter titles.

 

Ross: Some of these theories are elaborate and smart. They're not crap. I love reading this stuff.

 

Matt: But we don’t go on Reddit.

 

Ross: No, people send us the stuff. I know I would never get out if I went in there.

On expanding the existing mythology in the second season:

Matt: Even way back when we pitched to Netflix the first season, we talked about where it would potentially go. They understood the potential. Season one does almost feel like a big movie that comes to a sort of ending. A lot of that was based on the character of Will and the repercussions of him being in this upside down world for a week. Exploring that would be the second season. Once we got into the room for season two, we started expanding our mythology. We never got boxed in, because we’re dealing with an alternate dimension. It feels like the possibilities are limitless. We’re building up the mythology in a way that we know now where we want the story and these characters to end. We have more of a game plan now than we did two years ago.

The lesson learned here is to keep on churning out Stranger Things theories and posting them on reddit and Twitter; the Duffers might just acknowledge those of you who are clever enough to figure out their plan. Be sure to head over to THR's interview for more, including the decision to air nine episodes in the second season, and their experiences working with such a young cast.

For more on Stranger Things, be sure to check out some of our recent write-ups below:

• ‘Stranger Things’: SNL Parodies the Hit Netflix Show
• Shawn Levy on ‘Stranger Things’ Season 2: Expect Some “Next-Level Crazy Stuff”
• ‘Stranger Things’ Kids Performing “Uptown Funk” at the Emmys Will Brighten Your Day
• ‘Stranger Things’ Season 2: The Case for an Anthology Series
• ‘Stranger Things’ Season 2: Details Revealed for New Characters Max, Billy, and Roman