Sweaty Stranger Things stage play trailer insists it “might” point to what comes next
Stranger Things: The First Shadow is expected to bring Hawkins, Indiana to London's West End later this year
Aux News Stranger Things
Of all the tricks Netflix has pulled in recent months to increase its revenue—cracking down on password sharing, raising prices, tossing Chris Hemsworth at the screen with wild abandon—few are odder than the news that the video firm would soon be pivoting to theater. Specifically, with its record-smashing genre series Stranger Things, which announced almost exactly a year ago today that it was making the move to the stage, because if there’s one thing that fervent fans of nostalgia-based Spielberg pastiches love, it’s watching dedicated thespians trod the boards.
But, just in case a sheer love of the dramaturgical arts isn’t enough to lure in the Hawkins-ites out in the audience, Netflix has decided to play a manipulative card or two to sweeten the deal, releasing a trailer for Stranger Things: The First Shadow today that goes very heavy on footage from the show, very light on any idea of what the play might actually looks like, and ends by saying, “The beginning of the Stranger Things story might hold the key to what comes next.”
(And if you’re suddenly hearing a serious and concerning creaking coming from said trailer, that’s the sound of a load-bearing “might” twisting and splintering under the strain.)
Of course, anyone who’s ridden the multi-media cross-promotion rodeo before—say, when Star Wars decided to announce a key plot point in The Rise Of Skywalker via an event in tween credit card trap Fortnite—will know that there’s no good way to pull off what Netflix is trying here. Either The First Shadow matters to the overall story of Stranger Things—in which case, viewers will have to either pony up for tickets or avail themselves of Wikipedia (the poor man’s Broadway)—or it doesn’t, in which case, a bunch of theatergoers bought popcorn for no good reason at all. The best anybody can hope for, honestly, is that the play tells a good story in its own right, or, barring that, has some cool tentacle effects on the stage, as it delves into what we’re going to assume is an extended look at bad guy Vecna’s backstory.
The First Shadow will arrive some time later this year, at the Phoenix Theater in London’s West End.
17 Comments
I’ll just wait for the show proper to return and Mike to say, “Somehow, the Demogorgon returned.”
And just like that, the Demogorgon returned.
In season three of “Just like That” Samantha is going to be recast as the Demogorgon
Well shit, now I’m gonna have to actually start watching that trash show…
…in Pog form!
I don’t get it. How does it make sense to do a stage show for a massively successful show like this? Isn’t it a bit like going from being a doctor to running a lemonade stand?
Doing stage shows is hugely fucking expensive. People like popular shows that have succeeded in the past, big names, or popular brands. Producers of stage shows like making money. Wallace Beery, wrestling picture… what do you need, a roadmap?
Plus I hear that in theater, a flop can make you more money then a success. At least that is what my totally not shady produce friend tried to convince me of once
Produce friend? Are you referring to the esteemed Albert Broccoli?
Mmm, steamed Broccoli.
Speaking of doctors, Doctor Who and the Daleks in ‘Seven Keys to Doomsday’ played the West End between the Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker TV runs.There was even an Are You Being Served? stage play while that show was still on TV.
Eh, I saw Stranger Sings! off-Broadway, where Barb got an amazing 11 o’clock number. That’s enough for me.
Hey , sorry to comandeer this , but how are you guys putting up with this?Herbs seem to be using an AI chatbot for articles now:https://variety.com/2023/digital/news/io9-ai-generated-star-wars-article-errors-1235662194/It would have been organised July 4th as well right? which is when there would have been fewer people (on a US site) to complain. Also , comments turned off ..natch. I guess this is the future now . They are literally grinding this place into the ground now, I mean literally anyone with a 1/4 of a brain could see this is not going to end well .
We have been joking for a while about AI writing things here but it was only slightly joking. I have suspected for some time that some of the “writers” here have been mostly just generating AI content and then doing a quick proof read before posting. Just seems like IO9 was the first to just straight up say an AI did it.
There’s one on this very page: Something crapped out by “The AV Club Bot” that is actually just a list of movies from 2003. The text for each slide is the main cast, it’s box office gross, and literally nothing else. It’s a travesty.
“Of course, anyone who’s ridden the multi-media cross-promotion rodeo before—say, when —will know that there’s no good way to pull off what Netflix is trying here.”This never happened. There was no “major plot point revealed.” I read the linked article and they NEVER GOT OUT OF THE COCKADOODIE CAR!What’s going on here, asshole?
It was all a dream