A fourth Stranger Things project heads to series
Netflix has formally ordered a live-action spinoff of Stranger Things to series, according to Variety. The project carries the title Other Worlds: A Stranger Things Adventure and is planned to premiere in 2028. The pickup was disclosed on Stranger Things Day, the yearly observance tied to the date Will Byers vanished in the original program, Nov. 6, 1983. It becomes the fourth title set within the Stranger Things universe.[S1][S2][S3][S4][S5][S6][S7][S8]
The existing projects are the main Stranger Things series, which concluded its run at the close of 2025, the animated show Stranger Things: Tales from '85, and the stage production Stranger Things: First Shadow, which explores the history of Henry Creel, also known as Vecna. Word that a spinoff was in development first surfaced in 2022.[S1]
A 1955 story in Marion, Nevada
Specific plot information about Other Worlds remains limited. What is known is that it functions as a prequel placed in the 1950s, earlier than both Stranger Things and The First Shadow. In an interview connected to the flagship's finale, Matt and Ross Duffer indicated the spinoff would center on events preceding Henry Creel's contact with the otherworldly substance that granted him his abilities.[S1]
A teaser released for Other Worlds supported that description, showing that the story unfolds in 1955 in Marion, Nevada.[S1]
Who is making the series
Kate Trefry, a writer on Stranger Things and the author of The First Shadow, shares creation credit on Other Worlds with the Duffer brothers. She also takes on showrunner duties and executive produces. Joe Wright is set to direct the opening three episodes and to executive produce, while Shawn Levy of 21 Laps, Paul Dichter, Shelley Meals, Andrea Sperling and Pavlina Hatoupis round out the executive producing team. Filming is scheduled for New Mexico.[S1]
The Duffers produce through their Upside Down Pictures banner, and Other Worlds is carved out of their existing overall agreement with Paramount. The brothers had previously held an overall deal at Netflix; in 2025 it was announced they would move to Paramount under an agreement spanning film, television and streaming once their Netflix pact lapsed in April 2026.[S1]
What the creators and Netflix say
The Duffers described the project as something they had imagined for years and called seeing it realized both surreal and exhilarating. They credited Trefry, noting she had worked alongside them since the second season and wrote The First Shadow, and praised Wright as an artist whose work they had admired for a long time. They said the show keeps the Stranger Things identity while offering a new setting, new heroes and villains, and further elements they were not permitted to reveal, and they pointed viewers toward casting news while urging fans to watch the skies.[S1]
Trefry said the Duffers gave her her first paid job in Hollywood and described the experience since as a joy and a fever dream. She called it an honor to bring the new chapter to life with them and with Wright, and said the team had relished returning to the flagship's horror, wonder and mystery while telling a wholly new story. She promised more mysteries to explore and welcomed audiences to Other Worlds.[S1]
Jinny Howe, Netflix's Head of Scripted Series for the US and Canada, said the franchise has always belonged to its fans, whose enthusiasm turned it into a worldwide phenomenon. She framed the announcement as a chance to partner again with the Duffers and Trefry and to give fans a new dimension of the universe, describing the 1950s setting as carrying new heroes along with the heart, mystery and spectacle of the original. Levy said 21 Laps was thrilled to continue the storytelling legacy, describing Other Worlds as a new ensemble and adventure that shares the flagship's DNA while exploring a fresh era, setting, characters, themes and mythology whose seeds may have been planted in Hawkins.[S1]
