‘Stranger Things’: Writer Explains The Duffer Brothers Made Major Changes to Play Script Before Series 5

Beyond the screen, ‘Stranger Things' universe keeps growing, but not before revealing some well-kept secrets.  Behind the Curtain: ‘Stranger Things: The First Shadow’, a recent documentary, provides an inside peek at the making of the upcoming Broadway musical. It also discloses that some significant alterations were made to safeguard plot shocks in the much-awaited fifth season of the show.

Creators Matt and Ross Duffer gave playwright Kate Trefry, who has been working on ‘Stranger Things’ since season two, explicit orders to reduce the play's screenplay.  Trefry told director Stephen Daldry during a 3 Mills Studio rehearsal that they needed to drastically cut some parts of the screenplay.  Important plot points were not intended to be revealed before season five by the show's creators.  Even though there are several extensively restricted scenes in the documentary, it was obvious that the changes were made to preserve significant revelations for the series' last chapter.

Image Courtesy: Netflix

Later, Trefry clarified that although there is a time constraint, getting the story right is more crucial, even if it means setting ground rules for the team as a whole.  She reminded the group that Stranger Things is based in science fiction, not fantasy, and chastised a co-director who was leaning too much toward fantasy in one scene.

Trefry reflected on the difficulties of writing for the stage and pointed out the sharp distinctions between writing a play and a TV script.  Storytelling on stage calls for a distinct strategy in the absence of cinematic devices like close-ups and fast cuts.

On 22nd April, 2025, ‘Stranger Things: The First Shadow’, which made its London premiere in 2023, will make its Broadway debut.  The prequel drama delves into the pasts of well-known figures like Joyce Maldonado and Jim Hopper, as well as the beginnings of Henry Creel, who fans are more familiar with as Vecna.

–Farheen Ali