Creators of the hit Netflix series Stranger Things, the Duffer Brothers, have recently established a new production company, which will set off with an adaptation of a Stephen King novel and a new series from the creators of Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance.
Alongside the announcement of a planned Stranger Things spin-off, a new stage play based on the hit series, and a live-action Death Note adaptation, Upside Down Pictures is also set to work on a series adaptation of the 1984 novel The Talisman, written by Stephen King and Peter Straub.
The new series will be directed by Stranger Things’ co-executive producer and writer Curtis Gwinn. In a recent statement, Matt Duffer noted that the series takes a bold step into fantasy. “It has sci-fi. It has horror elements. It has a lot of heart. It has everything that we love. And it’s got the best werewolf character I think, ever.”
Stephen King’s The Talisman follows the story of a young man who moves between New Hampshire and a strange underworld world known as “The Territories,” where he finds himself searching for an artefact that will help save his mother’s life.
Meanwhile, it has also been announced that the production company will be working on a brand-new original series helmed by Jeffrey Addiss and Will Matthews. The successful duo developed the 2020 Netflix original series The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance, a prequel to the 1982 Jim Henson film The Dark Crystal. No further details have been released just yet about the new series, however, so watch this space.
Elsewhere, the Duffer Brothers have recently responded to criticism from Millie Bobby Brown. The Stranger Things actor felt that the show’s creators were “sensitive Sallies” and that they need to kill off more core characters. She added: “We need to have the mindset of Game of Thrones.”
During the latest edition of the Happy Sad Confused podcast, the Duffer Brothers were asked to respond to the criticism. “We heard,” Matt Duffer said. “What did Millie call us? She said we were ‘sensitive Sallies’. She’s hilarious. Believe us, we’ve explored all options in the writing room.”
He continued: “Just as a complete hypothetical, if you kill Mike [Finn Wolfhard], it’s like… that’s depressing… we aren’t Game of Thrones. This is Hawkins, it’s not Westeros. The show becomes not Stranger Things anymore because you do have to treat it realistically, right?
“So even when Barb [Shannon Purser] dies, there’s two seasons worth of grappling with that, so imagine – is that something we’re interested in exploring or not interested in exploring?”
But Duffer did promise that further deaths were “on the table” as Stranger Things heads “towards the end”.
“This is me basically defending myself against these Millie Bobby Brown accusations and explaining that there are lives behind it, and it’s nothing to do with my sensitivity. So there you go, Millie,” he explained.
