There’s Going to Be a Stranger Things Spinoff Without Our Favorite Characters?

Stranger Things season 4 was a brilliant new entry in the hit series, but it is also the penultimate season, and with season 5 being the end for our favorite group of kids from Hawkins, it is rough for fans of the show to know it is coming to the end. But we also have a lot of other, related properties coming our way, like a Stranger Things spinoff series that we know very little about.

According to series creators the Duffer brothers, it will be “10000% different” and the “connective tissue” will be the “storytelling sensibility.” The Duffers’ newly launched Upside Down Pictures and 21 Laps are producing the series, and it seems to be completely separate from the show we’ve come to know and love. So that means we probably won’t be seeing our favorite teens from Hawkins. That’s tied into a new stage play from Sonia Friedman, Stephen Daldry, and Netflix that will be part of the world of Stranger Things, as well, as part of a big Netflix deal for the duo that will see them working on another live-action Death Note, among other things.

What we can assume, I suppose, is that we’re going to get to see how the elements of the series affect other characters throughout the world and throughout Hawkins, but it does hurt to know that we probably won’t get to see Will, Mike, Lucas, Dustin, Max, or Eleven in this world. (I’m holding out hope that Steve Harrington somehow makes an appearance.)

If the series is really that different, it also gives us very little to go on in terms of theorizing exactly what it’ll be about, but that hasn’t stopped the series incredibly enthusiastic fans, of course. Over on reddit, theories are already flying, including some still holding out hope that the spinoff could both be different and follow a fan-favorite character from the existing series—though that seems like it’d qualify as the “connective tissue” if that were the case. If any truly convincing theories pop up as we learn more, we’ll keep you in the know.

But when will the spinoff release?

Also up in the air right now is just when we’ll get to see this series. The Duffer brothers are reportedly taking a bit of a break right now before diving into writing Stranger Things’ own fifth and final season, and it stands to reason that the spinoff isn’t likely to arrive before the end of the original series, which certainly won’t premiere until at least some time in 2023, and possibly even 2024. However, the Duffers are also handing off showrunning duties for the spinoff, so it’s also possible that it could arrive shortly after season 5, or maybe even before, but I wouldn’t count on it.

(featured image: Netflix)