Netflix's new live-action series will introduce fresh characters and mysteries, with Kate Trefry as showrunner and Joe Wright directing the first three episodes.
Other Worlds: A Stranger Things Adventure is officially moving forward at Netflix, bringing audiences back to the 1950s for a new chapter in the Stranger Things universe. The streaming service announced the live-action prequel on November 6, Stranger Things Day, confirming that the series will arrive in 2028.
Set in Marion, Nevada, in 1955, the upcoming series will introduce a new group of characters and explore a different corner of the supernatural world created by Matt and Ross Duffer. The story takes place decades before the events of the original series and even predates the stage production Stranger Things: The First Shadow.
While Netflix is keeping specific plot details under wraps, the announcement offers an intriguing clue about what audiences might expect. The Duffer Brothers ended their statement by encouraging fans to "watch the skies, nerds!" The cryptic message, along with the series' Nevada setting, suggests that unexplained phenomena and possibly something connected to the skies could play a role in the new mystery.
Matt and Ross Duffer will serve as co-creators and executive producers, but they are handing much of the day-to-day creative leadership to longtime Stranger Things writer Kate Trefry. Trefry, who joined the original series during its second season and wrote the stage production Stranger Things: The First Shadow, will serve as showrunner.
Filmmaker Joe Wright, whose credits include Atonement, Pride & Prejudice and Darkest Hour, will direct the first three episodes. Production is planned for New Mexico, although the story itself takes place in Nevada.
In their announcement, the Duffer Brothers expressed their excitement about finally bringing the project to life after years of development.
We've been dreaming of Other Worlds: A Stranger Things Adventure for many years now, and to see it become a reality is surreal and exhilarating.
The brothers praised Trefry, who has worked with them since the original show's second season, and Wright, whose filmmaking they have long admired. They also promised that the new series would retain the spirit of Stranger Things while introducing a different setting, new heroes and villains, and mysteries they aren't quite ready to reveal.
Netflix's head of scripted series for the United States and Canada, Jinny Howe, announced the project as part of the company's Stranger Things Day celebration. Howe credited the franchise's devoted fans for helping turn the original series into a worldwide phenomenon and expressed enthusiasm for expanding its universe with another generation of characters.
Trefry also reflected on her history with the Duffer Brothers, explaining that they gave her her first paying job in Hollywood. Now, she will help guide the next chapter of the franchise alongside Wright and the show's executive producers.
According to Trefry, the creative team has enjoyed returning to the horror, wonder, and mystery that defined the original series while developing a story with its own identity. The goal is to capture what audiences loved about Stranger Things without simply repeating the adventures of the Hawkins characters.
Executive producers include Matt and Ross Duffer through their Upside Down Pictures banner, Shawn Levy through 21 Laps, and Paul Dichter, Shelley Meals, Andrea Sperling, and Pavlina Hatoupis.
The announcement also comes as Netflix continues expanding the franchise beyond the original series. The animated Stranger Things: Tales From '85 explores another period in Hawkins' history, while The First Shadow has brought the franchise's mythology to the stage.
For now, casting details for Other Worlds: A Stranger Things Adventure remain under wraps. However, the shift to 1955 Nevada opens the door to an entirely different atmosphere, one that could draw on the era's fascination with UFOs, government secrets and unexplained events.
Whether those possibilities are part of the story remains to be seen, but one thing is certain: the Duffer Brothers aren't finished exploring the mysteries of the Stranger Things universe.
Other Worlds: A Stranger Things Adventure is scheduled to premiere on Netflix in 2028. A specific release date has not yet been announced.
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