Despite previous reports that Netflix's hit retro-themed supernatural series Stranger Things would likely wrap up after four seasons, executive producer Shawn Levy has high hopes that the show will continue to live on beyond that point. At the very least, he's expecting to see one additional season, though that will likely be the franchise's conclusion.
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"Hearts were heard breaking in Netflix headquarters when the Brothers made four seasons sound like an official end, and I was suddenly getting phone calls from our actors’ agents,” Levy told Entertainment Weekly. “The truth is we’re definitely going four seasons and there’s very much the possibility of a fifth. Beyond that, it becomes I think very unlikely.”
Co-creator Ross Duffer also chimed in, noting that the show's goal is to tell a complete story. However, he wants to see it do so without overstaying its welcome to the point where the audience can no longer suspend their disbelief.
“I think [season 2] will be a satisfying end but there’s still danger out there," he told EW. "There’s too much to deal with in one more season. If we’re able to, there will be at least four, there could be more. I think there’s going to come a point where why aren’t these people leaving Hawkins? Like we’re going to stretch credibility. It wasn’t intended to be a seven-season thing.”
Matt Duffer expanded on his brother's sentiments, stating, “It’s not built to sustain that as a narrative. After it became successful, we had one of those big meetings with Netflix over dinner and they were like ‘We don’t want this going on that long.’ They were very supportive of it. It’s stupid to put an end date on it right now because we don’t know.”
Although the Duffer Brothers seem to be a bit more open-minded about the series extending beyond four seasons, their concerns still mirror those they voiced in August. "I don’t know if we can justify something bad happening to them once a year," said Matt, with Ross adding, “They’re going to have to get the fuck out of this town!”
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The second season of Stranger Things promises to be even scarier and more mysterious than the first, especially with the threat of a new monster. One popular theory is that the monster is the Thessalhydra, another fabled creature from Dungeons and Dragons. There’s also the possibility of seeing yet another character from the evil Hawkins Laboratory; one of the episodes is titled “The Lost Brother,” meaning there might be someone else like Eleven out there.
Stranger Things returns to Netflix October 27.