Stranger Things Was Conceived As A Miniseries - Here's Why That Changed At Netflix

The first season of "Stranger Things" is often considered its best, and that's mainly due to how self-contained it is. Season 3 and 4 spend a lot of time setting up future events, while season 2 features what feels like a back-door spin-off pilot episode tossed in there. Season 1, then, is the only "Stranger Things" season that focuses on telling a complete, standalone story. Well, almost. 

There is, admittedly, a matter that season 1 neglects to expand on, and it gave the show major potential for a multi-season arc going forward: the Upside Down. Introduced as a mysterious alternate dimension covered in alien-like spores and tentacles, by the end of season 1, viewers still don't know what exactly it is or where it comes from. Speaking to SFX Magazine, creators Matt and Ross Duffer revealed that their original plan for season 1 actually included an explanation for the Upside Down, but the Netflix higher-ups insisted they hold off on that. As Ross Duffer recalled:

"When we pitched to Netflix, we knew that they weren't interested in a limited series, so when we were making season 1, we knew that in success, it would continue, and so we purposely held back certain mysteries. The biggest one from season 1 was about what the Upside Down actually is, which is something we've known now for almost 10 years. We've thought about revealing it every time we write a season, and we just kept holding it back and holding it back."

Even back in the mid-2010s, it seems like Netflix understood it had a potential worldwide sensation on its hands. Why let this series end after one season when it could keep it going for years, turning it into a multi-billion dollar franchise in the process?

Ross Duffer also hyped "Stranger Things" season 5, adding, "It was exciting this season to be able to finally reveal what the Upside Down is, and it plays a huge role in the narrative, that final mystery of what it is, and what it all means." By revealing the Upside Down's full, true nature, the Duffer will hopefully end the show on a satisfying, conclusive note. 

But as someone who loved season 1 of "Stranger Things" yet has struggled to stay invested in the subsequent seasons, I'm not sure if the Upside Down ever really needed an explanation. "Stranger Things" was a scarier show back when the Upside Down was this mysterious, unknowable thing existing just beneath the surface of its characters' lives. It felt like a metaphor for the dark side of suburbia or the unexplainable tragedies that could befall any of us at any moment. But the more information we've gotten about the Upside Down in seasons 2 through 4, the more literal and less threatening the place has become. 

Season 1 felt magical because the reasons behind the Upside Down seemed so far beyond our characters' understanding that they would never get closure from it. There's something terrifying about having to live with knowing these horrors exist but never learning the how or why of them. "Stranger Things" has remained good enough since then that I can't really complain about the Duffers continuing the series and elaborating on its setting. Still, there's a part of me that wishes the show had ended on that high note of season 1, forever leaving the Upside Down a mystery.

The first part of "Stranger Things" season 5 hits Netflix on November 26, 2025.