Here's Stranger Things' Original Pitch

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Stranger Things: Eleven Didn't Survive Duffer Brothers' Original Pitch

By Geoff Miller

Published Nov 6, 2017

Stranger Things co-creator Ross Duffer reveals that the Netflix hit originally was planned as a limited series that would end with Eleven's death.

Over the course of its first two seasons, Stranger Things has blossomed into one of the world's most popular shows, but fans might be shocked to learn that not only was the series originally going to consist of a limited run, but that it would have ended with the death of its most beloved character: Millie Bobby Brown's Eleven.

"Maybe I shouldn’t say this because I like to pretend that it was all planned out, but it was originally pitched as a limited series," Stranger Things co-creator Ross Duffer said at a Q&A session for Chapman University’s Dodge College of Film and Media Arts, the writer's alma mater. "So, Eleven was gonna sacrifice herself and save the world, and then that was going to be it, because there was a moment where limited series were a big deal."

As Duffer alluded to, Hollywood has seen a lot of success from various limited series over the last few years, such as HBO's Big Little Lies and FX's Fargo, but Netflix's plans for the '80s-themed monster mash broadened way beyond just one story arc.

"And I remember when we went into Netflix and we pitched this they were like, 'Well, we like this, but how could it keep going?'" Duffer said. "And you’re just sort of riffing in the moment and we were like, 'Well, Will’s back from this other dimension and he’s not doing very well.' And they were like 'great!'"

The streaming giant's foresight proved fortuitous, with figures released last week showing that a staggering 15 million total viewers watched the Season Two premiere in the first three days after release. Naturally, work on a third season is already underway, so fans won't have to wait too long until their next bingeable dose of the Upside Down.

Now streaming on Netflix, the second season of Stranger Things stars Winona Ryder, David Harbour, Finn Wolfhard, Millie Bobby Brown, Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb McLaughlin, Natalia Dyer, Charlie Heaton, Cara Buono, Matthew Modine, Noah Schnapp, Joe Keery, Sadie Sink and Dacre Montgomery.

(via LRMonline)