What started as a single Netflix series has become a full-blown multimedia franchise. Stranger Things now spans video games, novels, comics, and a stage production, each filling gaps or expanding corners of the lore the show itself never had time to explore.
But that expansion won't stop now that the live-action series has ended. Season 5 concluded on December 31, with its finale releasing both on Netflix and in theaters across the U.S. and Canada. The response was far from unified. Some fans praised the ambition, others criticized pacing and character outcomes, and online petitions quickly emerged calling for revised cuts. A viral theory—dubbed “Conformity Gate”—also suggested the finale was fake and another ending was imminent. But, of course, that never happened.
Related: ‘Stranger Things' Missing Chapter Coming Later This Year : Disney Fanatic
Netflix has already confirmed that the franchise will continue through two spinoff projects. One is live-action and currently in early development. The other is an animated series that reopens a section of the timeline previously considered settled.
That series is Stranger Things: Tales From ’85, a 3D animated project set between seasons 2 and 3. On paper, it sounds pretty safe, but in practice, it might complicate things. Season 2 ended with Eleven closing the Upside Down gate, yet Tales From ’85 introduces new monsters, new supernatural conflicts, and new circumstances that were never acknowledged when Season 3 began. Watch the announcement trailer below:
Netflix has confirmed the series is canon, even though its events never come up again in the main show. The story also introduces a brand-new character named Nikki Baxter (who has also never been mentioned), alongside familiar faces from the original cast.
Those returning characters—Eleven, Mike, Lucas, Dustin, Will, Max, and Hopper—are all voiced by a new cast. Brooklyn Davey Norstedt leads as Eleven, joined by Jolie Hoang-Rappaport, Luca Diaz, Elisha “EJ” Williams, Braxton Quinney, Ben Plessala, and Brett Gipson. Odessa A’zion, Janeane Garofalo, and Lou Diamond Phillips round out the supporting cast.
Whether it deepens the mythology or complicates it further, Tales From ’85 represents the clearest sign yet that Stranger Things isn’t finished revisiting its own past.
Stranger Things: Tales From ’85 premieres on Netflix this year.
Are you excited about Stranger Things: Tales From ’85? Let us know in the comments!
