In a few months, the fifth season of Stranger Things will conclude the hit series that debuted on Netflix nine years ago. But that doesn't mean the red N plans to abandon its strong franchise overnight. While the stage play continues in full swing (until November 9, 2025 in London and until March 8, 2026 in New York), the streaming platform is preparing to welcome a first spin-off in the form of an animated series. The project, unveiled in April 2023, has been keeping a low profile, but has finally given some news at the Annecy Festival.
The famous celebration of the animation industry served as a springboard for Netflix to present first images as well as new details regarding the upcoming program. Unfortunately, these extracts were not shared outside the festival grounds, but the information gathered by spectators present on site already allows us to establish a composite portrait of the spin-off.
What is the cartoon Stranger Things about?
With this new animated series, everything is in the title, literally. Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 will tell an all-new story set in the winter of 1985, a period between seasons 2 and 3 of the original series. Creators Matt and Ross Duffer are overseeing the project as executive producers. When the project was announced in April 2023, the duo described the spin-off as “worthy of the Saturday morning cartoons we grew up with”.
Returns from the media Collider indicate a series animated with computer graphics, and not hand-drawn like in the 80s and 90s. Australian studio Flying Bark is in charge of the project, suggesting a visual style close to the series Marvel What If animated by the same teams. A slightly disappointing artistic direction, given that this same studio is behind other more “classic” productions such as The Fate of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles or Moon Girl and Devil the Dinosaur.
The short clips presented at Annecy allowed us to see recurring characters from the series, namely Mike Wheeler, Will Byers, Eleven, Dustin Henderson, Lucas Sinclair, Max Mayfield and Jim Hopper. But a new character named Nikki Baxter will also be part of the show, described as “a young girl with short pink hair”. The showrunner of Stranger Things: Tales from ’85, Eric Robles, said he was inspired by the 1986 cartoon Ghostbusters.
So we can expect a good dose of mystery, monsters and nostalgia. For now, this spin-off isn't being described as canon to the original series' lore, and likely won't be. Since the animated series is set to introduce characters and creatures that never appeared in later seasons, it's hard to justify their existence.
When will this spin-off be released?
Stranger Things: Tales from '85 still doesn't have an official release date, but a 2026 window has finally been established. This animated series will most likely become a comfort program for die-hard fans who are still mourning the original series, a few months after its initial broadcast. Are you ready to say goodbye to Stranger Things?
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