Stranger Things’ telekinetic teen Eleven (breakout star Millie Bobby Brown) may be able to lift government kidnapper vans but series creators Ross and Matt Duffer can rattle off the biggest movies of the summer of 1984 without blinking. Their passion for pop culture fueled the creation of Netflix’s Things, a tribute to the movies they loved as kids in North Carolina (think E.T., The Goonies, Stand by Me). “Obviously they’re nerdy, but that’s what makes them so cool,” says Brown. “It makes [Stranger Things] so authentic because it comes from their hearts.” The Duffers’ canny but old-fashioned combination of emotion and thrills drove the series — about four small-town Indiana friends who find themselves dealing with a portal to a different dimension — to monster-level success after its 2016 premiere. “I don’t think Netflix thought it was going to be as huge as it became, but neither did we,” admits Matt.
On Oct. 27, fans will finally get to see Things’ bigger, badder second installment. To celebrate the return, Entertainment Weekly has three different covers featuring the cast and you can read more about Stranger Things season 2 HERE.
The new issue of Entertainment Weekly will be on stands Friday.
