At Least 15 Networks Passed on Stranger Things

Stranger Things is one of Netflix’s most popular series, so it's hard to imagine that every other network wasn't begging for the opportunity to bring the world of Hawkins, Indiana to its viewers. Well, it turns out that wasn't the case at all. At least 15 other networks passed on the opportunity to purchase the show before Netflix agreed to buy the first season.

Stranger Things co-creators Matt and Ross Duffer had a hard time getting Hollywood producers to truly understand the show when they first set out to sell it. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Matt discussed the struggles they faced, admitting that they were rejected by 15 to 20 networks.

"'You either gotta make it into a kids show or make it about this Hopper [detective] character investigating paranormal activity around town,'" Matt remembered one producer telling him. “Then we lose everything interesting about the show ... There was a week where we were like, ‘This isn’t going to work because people don’t get it.’”

But eventually, people started catching on to what the brothers were trying to do.

“The Duffer brothers came in, and within 10 minutes I knew that these were future major guys,” producer Shawn Levy told The Hollywood Reporter. “They had a self-assurance that was self-evident. So, we pitched it to Netflix, and within 24 hours, we had the whole season bought. We decided that we would direct all of the episodes ourselves.”

Filming for Stranger Things Season 3 wrapped in November, and several of the show's actors have since confirmed that there will definitely be a Season 4 and beyond.

Though no specific release date has been announced yet, Netflix has confirmed that the third season will drop sometime next summer.