Netflix Announces STRANGER THINGS Live-Action Prequel Series OTHER WORLDS With Creepy First Teaser

Netflix is taking Stranger Things back to the 1950s with a new live-action prequel series, and it looks like some of the biggest mysteries surrounding Henry Creel are finally going to get answers.

The spinoff is titled Other Worlds: A Stranger Things Adventure, and it has officially been greenlit for a 2028 premiere. The series comes from Matt and Ross Duffer and longtime Stranger Things writer Kate Trefry, with Joe Wright (Pride & Prejudice, Atonement) directing the first three episodes.

Netflix made the announcement on Stranger Things Day, November 6, and released a creepy teaser that takes us to Marion, Nevada, on April 19, 1955.

The footage shows an abandoned bicycle near a restricted area in the middle of the night. A small base military base glows in the distance then suddenly the sky explodes with a thunder crack and the closed spilt apart. It's a simple but effective tease that suggests some seriously weird things were happening long before the trouble in Hawkins.

The series takes place before both the original Stranger Things and the Tony-winning stage production Stranger Things: The First Shadow. While the creators promise a completely new story with new characters, the connection to the play appears to be important.

Trefry, who wrote The First Shadow from a story developed with the Duffers and Jack Thorne, will serve as writer and showrunner on the new series.

One of the biggest mysteries Other Worlds will explore involves the strange rock that young Henry Creel discovers inside a scientist's briefcase in the Nevada caves. The object was introduced in The First Shadow before appearing in the fifth season of Stranger Things.

Matt Duffer previously confirmed that the spinoff will explain the rock's significance and “will answer some of the loose threads that are remaining.”

There's another interesting connection hiding in the announcement teaser. The song playing over the footage is "Sh-Boom" by The Chords, which fans might recognize from Season 5, Episode 4. It's heard when Max enters Henry Creel's memories at Hawkins High School, another location featured in The First Shadow.

The Nevada setting also raises some questions. The stage play originally featured Rachel, Nevada, while the new series takes place in Marion. Netflix filmed several performances of The First Shadow in February, and one audience member who attended a recording reported that the location had been changed to Marion for the filmed version.

That recording reportedly includes adjustments to better connect the play with Season 5. Netflix hasn't announced when the filmed production will be released, but it could help connect the original series to Other Worlds.

The Duffers have been developing the spinoff idea since Season 4 arrived in 2022. Last November, Matt confirmed that the project was moving ahead, saying, “We are moving forward with it. Netflix, they finally know what it is.”

The brothers shared their excitement about finally getting the series off the ground: “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.

“We’re so grateful to our incredible team of collaborators: our showrunner Kate Trefry, who has been in the trenches with us since Season 2 and wrote Stranger Things: The First Shadow; and our director, Joe Wright, a brilliant artist whose work we’ve long admired.

“We can’t wait for you to see what they’re cooking up. It’s Stranger Things, but also thrillingly fresh, with a new setting, new heroes and villains, and new… actually, we’re not allowed to say any more. Now, on to casting. In the meantime — watch the skies, nerds!”

Trefry landed her first television staff writing job on Stranger Things, wrote her first stage play with The First Shadow, and is now creating her first television series with Other Worlds.

She shared: “The Duffer Brothers gave me my first paying job in Hollywood, and it has been a joy and a fever dream ever since. Now, it is my insane honor and privilege to be bringing this new chapter of Stranger Things to life alongside them and our incredible director Joe Wright.

“With the support of Netflix and 21Laps, we have had the time of our lives returning to all the horror, wonder and mystery of the flagship, while also telling a wholly new story, one we hope will blow your minds and break your hearts all over again. There are so many more mysteries to explore. Welcome to Other Worlds.”

The Duffers will executive produce rather than handle day-to-day showrunning duties, as they're now under an exclusive overall deal with Paramount. Their continued involvement with Stranger Things projects through Upside Down Pictures remains part of that arrangement.

Shawn Levy, who recently signed an overall deal with Disney's 20th Television, is also returning as an executive producer through 21Laps Entertainment, although he won't be directing. Additional executive producers include Paul Dichter, Shelley Meals, Andrea Sperling, and Pavlina Hatoupis.

Netflix Head of Scripted Series for the US and Canada, Jinny Howe, said: “Stranger Things has always belonged to the fans, and their passion made it a worldwide phenomenon. Today, on Stranger Things Day, we’re honored to partner again with Matt and Ross Duffer and Kate Trefry to give fans a new dimension of this universe to step into.

“Other Worlds: A Stranger Things Adventure takes us to the 1950s with new heroes and all the heart, mystery, and spectacle of the original series. We’re proud to keep building this world with the Duffers, Kate, Shawn Levy, and Joe Wright, and we can’t wait for fans to see what’s next.”

Levy also talked about expanding the franchise beyond Hawkins: “All of us at 21Laps are thrilled and privileged to be continuing the storytelling legacy of Stranger Things.

“With Other Worlds, the Duffer Brothers and Kate Trefry craft a new ensemble and adventure that is imbued with the DNA of our flagship series while exploring a new era, setting and all-new characters, themes and mythology — the seeds of which may have been planted in Hawkins, but now venture into other worlds of spectacle, action and emotion.”

The new prequel is the latest expansion of a franchise that began in 2016 and became one of Netflix's biggest hits, generating more than 1.2 billion views across its first four seasons.

It also joins the animated spinoff Stranger Things: Tales From ’85, which takes place between Seasons 2 and 3 of the original show. That series has released two seasons and is awaiting a renewal decision.

There's still plenty we don't know about Other Worlds, including who will star in it, but exploring the origins of the Nevada experiments and the strange forces connected to Henry Creel sounds like a great direction for the franchise.

I'm especially interested in seeing how the series expands the mythology without relying on the original Hawkins crew. There's a lot of unexplored history in this universe, and taking the story back to 1955 opens up some cool possibilities.

Other Worlds: A Stranger Things Adventure premieres on Netflix in 2028. Enjoy the teaser!