Stranger Things, the breakout hit of last summer, drew all eyes at the Netflix FYC Emmy event Tuesday evening at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills. Although it is unclear what show creators Ross and Matt Duffer will tackle in season two, they did hint at one major aspect viewers can expect in October when the series returns.
“The Upside Down plays a major role in the upcoming season,” Ross told The Hollywood Reporter.
Added Matt: “The gate to the Upside Down in the last season was not closed, it is still there.”
Noah Schnapp, whose character, Will, spent much of last season trapped in the foreboding alternate dimension, also offered hints at what to expect from his character this time around. “You can see in the second season how the Upside Down affected Will. He is definitely holding back on what happens to him and keeps everything in,” Schnapp shared with THR.
Executive producer and director Shawn Levy explains that even with the complexities and new characters, remaining loyal to the show’s original vision is what will make this season another hit.
“The Duffers and I are slightly superstitious, so it was important to us that we replicate the mojo of season one, which meant the brothers kicked things off with episode one and two and then I do three and four,” said Levy. “The first four episodes are exactly like season one.”
As to why the first season was such a hit, the helmer credits the relationships between the characters. “There’s a lot of talk about the move to darker threats and larger cinematic scale, but here’s the thing: Stranger Things works because we root for these kids and we root for these damaged characters that live on the margins,” Levy explained. “No one in the show is like a perfect, popular winner, everyone is struggling with the bit of that feeling of being on the outside looking in, and that’s true of the teenagers, the adults and the kids, and we know that what brought us here is characters that people connect to and feel authentic and that you root for, so season two is every bit as loyal to character first.”
Season two of Netflix’s Stranger Things is set to premiere Oct. 31.
