Netflix Inc. said on Wednesday that it is developing a spin-off of the sci-fi series “Stranger Things,” as the streaming service works to turn its biggest English-language hit into a sprawling entertainment franchise.
The new series will be based on an original idea by Matt and Ross Duffer, the twins who created “Stranger Things,” Netflix said in a statement. No details about the story or characters were provided.
Netflix also announced a play set in the world of “Stranger Things”.
The supernatural thriller starring Winona Ryder and David Harbor broke viewing records on Netflix, surpassing period drama “Bridgerton” as the company’s most-watched English-language show.
“Stranger Things” reverberated through the zeitgeist when it debuted in 2016 and turned Millie Bobby Brown, then 12, into a global star. The most recent season propelled Kate Bush’s song “Running Up That Hill” to the top of the iTunes and Spotify charts 37 years after its original release.
Season four ended with the final two episodes last week, briefly crashing the Netflix app as fans rushed to see them. The series has logged 1.15 billion hours of watch time on Netflix, second only to South Korean drama “Round 6“.
“One of the reasons why ‘Stranger Things’ really popped the way it did is that there’s a universality at the heart of it,” said Matthew Thunell, a vice president at Netflix who read the script first and defended the series. “It’s about the strength of friendship, how friendship triumphs over evil.”
The series is the first that Netflix has sought to develop as a traditional entertainment franchise, whose characters and stories span film, television, games and consumer products. Its popularity took Netflix by surprise — “honestly, we could never have predicted what ‘Stranger Things’ turned out to be,” Thunell said.
As the show’s audience expanded beyond so-called “nerds,” or science fiction fans, to include adults captivated by its 1980s pop culture references, Netflix began thinking of ways to extend the story through of spin-offs and merchandise.
This resulted in a series of “Stranger Things” tie-ins, which include a Surfer Boy frozen pineapple and jalapeño pizza sold by Walmart in the United States, and a Hasbro Magic 8 toy. Fans were also able to participate in simulated sleep studies at a Hawkins National Laboratory attraction in New York, San Francisco and London.
“We’re starting from scratch and that gives us a lot of freedom to innovate and try new things,” said Josh Simon, vice president of consumer products at Netflix.
The new series is part of a production deal with the Duffers, who will also develop a live-action TV adaptation of the Japanese manga and anime “Death Note,” among other projects.
Source: CNN Brasil
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