Credit: NetflixMonths after Stranger Things’ final season concluded on Netflix, fans will get the chance to visit Hawkins and the Upside Down again — but this time on the big screen.
While Season 5 marked the end of the flagship series, which started in 2016 and quickly became a global phenomenon, several new Stranger Things projects are in development.
New Stranger Things Projects in Development
Even since the final season premiered in November, we’ve had a new tie-in novel starring Nancy Wheeler and the asymmetrical multiplayer game Dead by Daylight‘s second Stranger Things expansion. There was also the Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 expansion pack.
As for upcoming projects, it was recently confirmed that the Broadway production Stranger Things: The First Shadow has been filmed for Netflix. An untitled live-action project that centers on the “briefcase rock” that appeared in the Season 5 finale is also in development.
Related: Is ‘Stranger Things: Tales From ’85’ Canon? Here’s the Answer
Stranger Things: Tales From ’85
Chief among all the upcoming Stranger Things projects, however, is Tales From ’85.
The 3D animated series brings back all the main characters including Eleven, Mike, Will, Dustin, Lucas, and Max and takes place between seasons 2 and 3 of the main Netflix series.
Per Netflix, the official logline reads:
“In the winter of 1985, snow blankets the town and the horrors of the Upside Down are finally fading. Our heroes Eleven, Mike, Will, Dustin, Lucas, and Max have settled back into a normal life of D&D, snowball fights, and quiet days. But beneath the ice, something terrifying has awakened. Could it be from the Upside Down? From the depths of Hawkins Lab? Or from somewhere else entirely? Our heroes must race to solve this mystery and save Hawkins in this new story set in the Stranger Things universe.”
But while several characters return, actors such as Millie Bobby Brown and Sadie Sink aren’t returning. Tales From ’85 has a new voice cast that includes Jeremy Jordan as Steve Harrington, Brooklyn Davey Norstedt as Eleven, Jolie Hoang-Rappaport as Max Mayfield, Luca Diaz as Mike Wheeler, Elisha “EJ” Williams as Lucas Sinclair, Braxton Quinney as Dustin Henderson, Benjamin Plessala as Will Byers, and Brett Gipson as Jim Hopper.
Watch the official trailer for the animated series below:
Related: ‘Stranger Things’ Confirms That Major Character Survived Season 5 Finale — Here’s How
New Series Will Be a “Lost Season”
In an exclusive interview with Empire in February, Tales from ’85 showrunner and executive producer Eric Robles offered a clear vision for the upcoming series while describing it as a “lost season”.
“We wanted to go back to Hawkins and feel like a lost season” he explained, before adding that the series focuses on “when the kids weren’t trying to save the world — they were just trying to save the town.”
Stranger Things Returns to Theaters
The new series will premiere on Netflix on April 23; however, it has been confirmed that the first two episodes will also be screened in select theaters on April 18, five days before the series launches on the streamer globally.
“The screenings, in partnership with AMC Theatres, will take place in 34 theaters across the U.S. at 12 p.m. and 3 p.m. local time,” Variety writes, adding, “Fans can also catch viewings at the Paris Theater in New York, as well as Netflix House Philadelphia. An exclusive collectible will be available to U.S. attendees while supplies last.”
Now, per The Hollywood Reporter, we also know that the double-bill preview will have a total run time of about 55 minutes, suggesting that each episode will be roughly 27 or 28 minutes in length.
Stranger Things has hit the big screen twice before: first, when Season 5 premiered at the TCL Chinese Theater on November 6, 2025 (Stranger Things Day), and second, when the Season 5 finale was dual released on Netflix and in over 600 theaters across the U.S. and Canada on December 31, 2025, continuing through January 1, 2026.
Whether the series will win back fans disappointed with Season 5 remains to be seen.
The final season was met with backlash ranging from online petitions demanding extended cuts to the viral theory (or hoax) dubbed “Conformity Gate”, which claimed that the final episode, “Chapter Eight: The Rightside Up,” was “fake” and that a new ending would follow.
Tickets for Tales From ’85 are now on sale.
Visit AMCTheatres.com for the full list of cities and theater locations.
Will you be watching Tales From ’85 in theaters? Let us know in the comments!