Stranger Things Producer Gives Update on Final Season

The fifth and final season of Stranger Things was about to start filming when the Writers Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA both went on strike. While the WGA strike has been resolved, SAG-AFTRA members are still on the picket lines as officials with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers have momentarily stepped away from the negotiating table. Still, Stranger Things producer Shawn Levy says the Duffer Brothers have been able to restart work on the final outing of the Netflix hit as the filmmakers wait out the actors' strike.

"I can say that we are hoping to start filming as soon as possible," Levy said in an all-new chat with TheWrap. "We really need the actor's strike resolved first. The Duffers have been hard at work since the writer strike ended," he said. We're busy on a bunch of fronts because we also have our Stranger Things play opening in London imminently. It's fabulous. It's f–king awesome."

That play is set a few decades before the events of the television series in an age where Hopper, Joyce, and the Wheelers were the same age of their kids in the show.

"It has exceeded all our expectations. We're very excited to share that with the world," Levy added. "We are raring to go — our cast, our crew. Everyone not only needs to get back to work because we have many hundreds of crew members who have not been able to make a living since the strikes began, but we will be shooting very shortly after the actor's strike ends."

There's another spin-off in development at Netflix, an animated series that pulls inspiration of the Saturday morning cartoons of yesteryear.

"We've always dreamed of an animated 'Stranger Things' in the vein of the Saturday morning cartoons that we grew up loving, and to see this dream realized has been absolutely thrilling," the Duffer brothers said in a statement. We couldn't be more blown away by what Eric Robles and his team have come up with – the scripts and artwork are incredible, and we can't wait to share more with you! The adventure continues..."

The show's fifth and final season was originally set to begin filming earlier this summer prior to the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes delaying principal photography indefinitely.

Stranger Things 5 is expected to premiere in 2024 on Netflix.