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With an 80s theme, a girl with superpowers, and a parallel universe filled with monsters, Stranger Things has become a prime specimen of dystopian science-fiction. The show became an instant hit right after its release on Netflix, and people have not stopped talking about it ever since.
Fans cannot seem to get enough of the horror-fiction drama, and many have come up with theories over the years. Meanwhile, the creators themselves have revealed several off-screen secrets about the show.
With Stranger Things 4 set to drop on May 27, 2022, here's what fans need to know about the hit, binge-watch-worthy series.
The Duffer Brothers' were dainty with Stranger Things casting, and more fun facts about the show
1) The show was originally called Montauk
The hit Netflix series Stranger Things was influenced by an actual government project dubbed the Montauk Project by all supernatural enthusiasts. Prior to the creators shifting the location to a remote town in Indiana, all creepy adventures were supposed to occur on Long Island under the official name Montauk.
Furthermore, the notion that the interaction between Eleven and the Demogorgon managed to open the gateway to the Upside Down originated from a mishap that conspiracy theorists presumed transpired in Montauk in 1983 and stopped classified military tests being done on children.
Theorists believe the children were kidnapped from Long Island to conduct a supposed government test on them. Regardless, the Duffers had to choose a different setting for Stranger Things as they believed it would be difficult to shoot on Long Island during winters.
2) More than 1,000 actors auditioned for the children's roles
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, the Duffer brothers said:
"We’ve found that the key to finding good kid actors is actually rather obvious: You just have to audition pretty much every kid in the world who wants to act. With our great casting director, Carmen Cuba, leading the way, we auditioned 906 boys and 307 girls."
The brothers stated that it is very difficult to choose 12-year-old leading actors. Thus, they had to audition a bunch of kids to make sure they had the perfect cast at the end of it.
3) The Upside Down had a different name during the initial stages
In a follow-up show called Beyond Stranger Things on Netflix, Millie Bobby Brown revealed that the real name of the Upside Down is the Nether. The cast got used to calling it the Upside Down, and the name stuck.
In the scripts for season 1, the Upside Down was mentioned as the Nether. But by season 2, they had permanently changed the name to the Upside Down.
4) The Duffer brothers had to convince Winona Ryder for the role
It took the Duffer brothers a significant amount of time to convince Winona Ryder to play the role of Joyce Byers. Variety reported that the Duffer brothers and Shawn Levy wanted Winona to play Joyce's role because she was the most appropriate actress for the role.
Although they were down with the idea from day one, they had to chat with and convince Winona for the role over tea. Their meeting got extended to a four-hour tea session, and by the time they were done, everybody was convinced that she was the perfect fit for the character.
Entertainment Weekly confirmed that in an interview with them, the Duffer brothers said:
"We actually talked very little about the show or the character of Joyce; we were mostly just getting to know each other."
Winona's most popular scene from the show was the Christmas lights scene during the third episode when she is almost by herself the entire time.
Initially, the teenagers were supposed to use Christmas lights to locate the monster. However, it was suggested that Joyce use the lights instead to communicate with Will. Her character had to display a range of emotions and she did a brilliant job and held the screen with an intrepid performance.
5) Stephen King played a significant role in Millie Bobby Brown bagging Eleven's role
Stephen King, everybody's favored paranormal author, was very impressed by Millie Bobby Brown's work on BBC's Intruders. He was impressed to such an extent that the author took to his official Twitter handle to applaud her performance.
Her exquisite and accomplished acting skills at such a young age acted as an advantage, landing her a noteworthy role as Eleven in Stranger Things.
Netflix is all set to drop season 4 of Stranger Things in May after teasing it for months. It is the perfect time to binge-watch the previous seasons and be prepared for when the most awaited season 4 arrives.
