The short version
What is the new Stranger Things prequel called?
It is called Other Worlds: A Stranger Things Adventure and is set to premiere on Netflix in 2028.
Where and when is Other Worlds set?
The teaser places the story in Marion, Nevada, on April 19, 1955, according to Deadline and NME.
How could Other Worlds connect to Henry Creel?
Variety reported that the series focuses on events before Henry was exposed to the substance that gave him his powers. Deadline says it is expected to explain the rock he finds in a scientist’s briefcase.
Who is making Other Worlds?
The Duffer brothers and Kate Trefry co-created the series. Trefry is showrunner, and Joe Wright will direct the first three episodes.
A new Stranger Things prequel could trace the events that came before Henry Creel gained his powers, although Netflix has kept the story under wraps. Titled Other Worlds: A Stranger Things Adventure, the series is set in 1955 and is due to arrive on Netflix in 2028.
Variety reported that the show will take place before the events of both the original series and the stage play Stranger Things: The First Shadow. The Duffers had previously teased that the story would focus on the period before Henry was exposed to the otherworldly substance that gave him his abilities.
Deadline has reported a more specific link: the series is expected to explain the rock young Henry finds in a scientist’s briefcase in caves in Nevada, an object introduced in The First Shadow and later featured in season five of Stranger Things. That connection points towards the prequel filling in part of the story behind Henry’s transformation, but the reported detail is not a full plot synopsis.
The Netflix announcement teaser places the action in Marion, Nevada, on April 19, 1955, according to Deadline and NME. It offers little else by way of story: NME describes a deserted bicycle, a radio and a warning sign for a restricted area. The footage sets a mood, rather than spelling out who the new characters are or what they will encounter.
There is a wrinkle in how much the new series will connect to familiar events. Netflix’s announcement describes a fresh story with new heroes and villains, while Deadline says the links to The First Shadow include the Nevada setting and the history of the rock. Marion is not the same place as Rachel, Nevada, where the play is set, Deadline notes. For now, the precise relationship between the locations and the story remains unclear.
Other Worlds is co-created by Matt and Ross Duffer and Kate Trefry, who wrote The First Shadow. Trefry will be the showrunner, and Joe Wright is set to direct its first three episodes. The series will film in New Mexico.
The show was announced on November 6, Stranger Things Day, which marks the date Will Byers disappeared in the original series. It is the latest project in the franchise after the animated series Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 and the stage production. Netflix has confirmed a 2028 premiere, but has not announced an exact date or casting details.
Top photo: “Stranger Things booth at Gamescom 2023 (53154629978)” by Sergiy Galyonkin from Raleigh, USA is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 (via Wikimedia Commons).
