It’s no secret Stranger Things has become a surprise pop-cultural phenomenon. Hence, all the times your friends and coworkers won’t stop talking about it. It’s easy to see why, too. Appealing to 80’s nostalgia is all the rage right now. Plus, its interesting characters, creative set pieces, and bizarre storytelling make it an homage to be proud of. It also lives up to its name. From Eleven’s telekinesis to Demogorgon, things certainly do get strange on the show. However, you might be surprised about some of the weird facts about Stranger Things. Ready to find your way into the Upside-Down? Here are 25 Best Facts About Stranger Things.
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The concept was envisioned by The Duffer Brothers after asking the question, "What if Spielberg made a Stephen King movie?"
Source: http://www.vulture.com/2017/08/the-duffer-brothers-upside-down-journey-to-stranger-things.html 24
The Duffer Brothers pitched it to several producers and executives, all who passed on the idea. Eventually, they teamed up with producer Shawn Levy and pitched the idea to Netflix. The rest, of course, is history.
Source: http://www.vulture.com/2017/08/the-duffer-brothers-upside-down-journey-to-stranger-things.html 23
While in development, they called the project "Montauk," named after the New York beach. They scrapped the name and location when they found out it was too hard to film in winter.
Source: https://techiegamers.com/stranger-things-facts/ 22
Actor Gaten Matarazzo, who plays the role of Dustin, actually has something known as cleidocranial dysplasia, a disorder that affects the bones and teeth. He said he lost 100 roles before landing his role on Stranger Things.
Source: https://www.self.com/story/stranger-things-star-gaten-matarazzo-shares-what-life-is-like-with-his-rare-bone-disorder 21
Netflix loved the concept so much they ordered a full season 24 hours after hearing it.
Source: https://www.techtimes.com/articles/171328/20160725/netflix-bought-full-season-of-stranger-things-the-day-after-hearing-its-pitch.htm 20
In preparation for filming, the cast, crew, and writers were told to watch more 80's movies, like The Goonies and Poltergeist.
Source: https://www.telltalesonline.com/21396/stranger-things-facts/ 19
The Duffer Brothers thoroughly vetted their cast, auditioning 906 boys and 307 girls for various roles. They had many of them say lines from the movie Stand By Me.
Source: http://ew.com/tv/2016/07/15/stranger-things-premiere-duffer-brothers/ 18
Stephen King was impressed by Millie Brown's acting before she was in Stranger Things. In 2014, he tweeted about her performance in the movie Intruders, calling her "terrific."
Source: https://twitter.com/StephenKing/status/516224402154094592 17
The Duffer Brothers wrote out an intricate 30-page document explaining the Upside-Down and the Demogorgon.
Source: https://variety.com/2016/tv/news/stranger-things-finale-duffer-brothers-interview-season-2-1201816664/ 16
The Stranger Things kids chemistry wasn't all acting. They became good friends before they shot the first scene, texting each other in a group chat.
Source: https://www.telltalesonline.com/21396/stranger-things-facts/ 15
The composers, Michael Stein and Kyle Dixon, of the now iconic score are also part of the experimental electronic band called Survive.
Source: http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/la-et-ms-stranger-things-music-20171030-story.html 14
The Upside-Down isn't its actual name. On all the scripts, it's referred to as "The Nether."
Source: https://www.cbr.com/stranger-things-upside-down-real-name/ 13
Holly, the toddler girl on the show, is played by twins Anniston and Tinsley Price. Most of their scenes aren't scripted.
Source: http://www.ew.com/article/2016/07/17/stranger-things-duffer-brothers-episode-3/ 12
Millie Bobby Brown, who plays the character Eleven, was born and raised in Spain to English parents that decided to move out to LA and put her in acting school.
Source: https://www.telltalesonline.com/21396/stranger-things-facts/ 11
Winona Ryder wanted her character to have Meryl Streep's hair from the movie Silkwood.
Source: https://www.thenational.ae/arts-culture/new-netflix-drama-stranger-things-revisits-the-era-of-et-and-freddy-krueger-1.152284 10
Originally, they wanted the teens to find Will using the Christmas lights, but it was changed when a producer said Joyce should use them to contact Will.
Source: https://www.harpersbazaar.com/culture/film-tv/g13305063/stranger-things-trivia/?slide=11 9
David Harbour, who plays the role of Hopper, wanted the character to wear the hat as an homage to Indiana Jones.
Source: https://www.hindustantimes.com/art-and-culture/exclusive-actor-david-harbour-speaks-about-netflix-s-stranger-things-and-working-with-winona-ryder/story-DIYYNGmeWjfjP6b4lQ1VuM.html 8
Sometimes the smallest choices make the biggest impact. When Millie Brown jerked her neck to the side while using her telekinesis to snap a character's neck, it was totally improvised.
Source: http://www.slashfilm.com/stranger-things-shawn-levy-dan-cohen-interview/ 7
Cinematographer Tim Ives used the RED Dragon to shoot Season 1, feeling it was similar to the lenses used in the 70's and 80's.
Source: https://deadline.com/2017/08/stranger-things-tim-ives-duffer-brothers-cinematography-emmys-interview-1202141889/ 6
Though, in order to get that 80's look, the colorist scanned 80's film grain to each frame to make it look more like a product of the time.
Source: http://ew.com/tv/2016/07/18/stranger-things-duffer-brothers-episode-4/ 5
When The Duffer Brothers approached Winona Ryder to play Joyce, she had no idea what streaming was and had never done a television series before.
Source: https://techiegamers.com/stranger-things-facts/ 4
To have Millie Brown float in the water scene, they poured twelve hundred pounds of epsom salts in the water.
Source: https://www.popsci.com/what-would-it-take-to-make-sensory-deprivation-tank-from-stranger-things 3
Steve was originally scripted to be, quote, "the biggest douchebag on the planet." However, the creators thought actor Joe Keery brought a certain likable charisma to the character and wanted to keep his character around rather than ditching him at the end of the first season.
Source: https://uproxx.com/hitfix/stranger-things-steve-was-as-shocked-as-you-were-about-nancys-final-choice/ 2
On the set of Season 2, Millie Brown showed up covered in glitter. It halted production for thirty minutes while they cleaned it off. No one knows how it happened.
Source: http://ew.com/tv/2016/07/16/stranger-things-duffer-brothers-episode-2/ 1
The Duffer Brothers showed Millie Brown a picture of Charlize Theron from Mad Max: Fury Road to convince her to shave her head for the role. Her mom tried to talk her out of it, but she said it was the best decision she ever made.
Source: http://www.indiewire.com/2016/07/stranger-things-millie-bobby-brown-interview-eleven-11-netflix-season-2-1201707207/ 
