Netflix officially pulled back the curtain today on the upcoming spin-off, Stranger Things: Tales From ’85. Dropping a stylized, neon-soaked teaser, the streaming giant confirmed that we are headed back to the winter of 1985, the lost months between the epic conclusion of Season 2 and the summer of Season 3.
Produced by the Duffer Brothers’ Upside Down Pictures and animated by the world-class Flying Bark Productions (What If…?), this marks the second major Duffer project slated for 2026. With the horror-thriller Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen arriving on March 26th, and Tales from ’85 following closely on April 23rd, fans have a lot to look forward to (or not, since some are concerned about the implications for the lore of the original series!)
What is Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 All About?
The show returns us to a Hawkins that is blanketed in snow, following the heroes as they face new monsters and mysteries. The official logline reads: “Welcome back to Hawkins in the stark winter of 1985, where the original characters must fight new monsters and unravel a paranormal mystery terrorizing their town in Stranger Things: Tales From ’85, an epic new animated series.”
The trailer shows us that Mike, Eleven, Will, Dustin, Lucas, and Max are settling into a normal life, playing D&D, exploring their feelings for each other, and having snowball fights. But suddenly, it cuts to a scene with someone in a biohazard suit seeing a monster that resembles a demo-like creature. The kids are next back out exploring the woods, finding some of the old vines and expressing concern that they appear to be mutating, before turning into a Demogorgon with a pumpkin head.
This new series picks up after the end of season 2, when Eleven closed the gate in the basement of Hawkins Laboratory, Dr. Owens giving Hopper a fake birth certificate for El, and the party attending the Snowball Dance. The last scene of the season, though, flips to the upside down with the Mind Flayer standing over the school. The Upside Down was cut off from the Right-Side Up, but not eliminated. The original series picked up in season 3 with a Russian Lab where they were trying to reopen a gate, which we eventually find out they do so under the Star Court mall.
This created a question for the show writers. How would the series feature creatures from the upside down? The teaser indicates that something from the Upside Down survived, and that what the characters will be facing off against during the new series. In an interview with Netflix, lead producer Eric Robles tells us that the stakes are more personal than apocalyptic, explaining that the core of the story involves the kids protecting Eleven. They are fearful that if the situation blows up, the government would back and intervene, which would put Eleven at risk. In this case, the viewers know something that the cast members technically do not, as we’ve had an in-the-future look at them and Hawkins. Tales from ’85 can’t kill off any of the members of the party or the older siblings, since they are all very much still alive during the following summer.
The New Kid on the Block: Nikki Baxter
The biggest wildcard is the introduction of a new character, Nikki Baxter. The character features a pink mohawk and has been described as being “taller, tougher, and mechanically inclined”. This adds another layer of complexity, as the character is never mentioned again in the canon of the original Stranger Things. Perhaps she is killed off or moves away, though it is still strange that she is never mentioned again, especially if she is involved significantly.
The Voice Cast
All of the main cast is returning in an animated version, though they will be voiced by new voice actors. Hopper, Nancy, and Steve are also shown in the teaser. Steve wasn’t originally expected to be a lead here, but his immense popularity with Stranger Things fans clearly made him a must-include. Notably absent from the teaser were Jonathan and Joyce, leaving it up to speculation at this point whether they will make an appearance.
The full list of characters and their actors are:
- Brooklyn Davey Norstedt as Eleven
- Jolie Hoang-Rappaport as Max
- Luca Diaz as Mike
- Elisha “EJ” Williams as Lucas
- Braxton Quinney as Dustin
- Benjamin Plessala as Will
- Brett Gipson as Hopper
- Jeremy Jordan as Steve
Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 premiers on Netflix on April 23rd, 2026.
