Netflix is expanding the world of Hawkins with a new animated adventure. Stranger Things: Tales From ‘85 arrives on the streaming platform on April 23, 2026. The show brings back Eleven, Mike, Dustin, Lucas, Max, and Will for a fresh mystery. This time, the story is set during the winter of 1985. That puts the events right between Season 2 and Season 3 of the original series.
Fans of the live-action show know that the ending of Season 2 left the group at the Snow Ball dance in December 1984. When Season 3 starts, it is already summer. The new mall, Starcourt, is open, and everyone is wearing shorts. The gap between these two seasons is about six months. Tales From ‘85 fills in that missing time. The creators chose this specific window to show the kids being normal kids before everything goes wrong again for the summer.
Why the Show Had to Take Place Between Seasons 2 and 3
The choice to set the story in this timeline was very important for the writers. Showrunner Eric Robles explained that after Eleven closed the gate at the end of Season 2, the threats from the Upside Down seemed to stop. However, the creative team had to figure out how new monsters could appear if the gate was closed.
Robles told Netflix’s Tudum that this was the main challenge. He researched old 1980s movies to find a solution. The answer was to create monsters that are a mix of “Hawkins Lab science meets Upside Down matter.” This allows the new creatures to have the “DNA of Upside Down creatures” without needing the main gate to be wide open.
This timeline also lets the audience see character moments that the main show skipped. Eric Robles mentioned that they wanted to focus on the “sense of young love” between Mike and Eleven after their first kiss. The show also explores the early stages of Lucas and Max’s relationship. The Duffer Brothers told Robles they wanted more time to “hang out with these kids” during the quieter moments.
The Hawkins Investigators Club and a New Mystery
The official logline for Stranger Things: Tales From ‘85 reveals that snow blankets the town. The horrors of the Upside Down are fading. The kids have returned to a normal life of D&D and snowball fights. But something new has awakened beneath the ice.
A major new element in the animated show is the creation of the Hawkins Investigators Club. Dustin comes up with this idea. He feels a sense of excitement that a new mystery exists. Eric Robles explained that Dustin feels the need to establish something meaningful to protect Hawkins. This group is his way of taking ownership of the town’s safety.
Unlike the later seasons of Stranger Things, the stakes here are smaller but more personal. “These kids are not saving the world, they’re saving the town,” Robles said. The goal is to keep the threat quiet so the government does not return for Eleven. The show balances action with “real danger” and “real stakes.”
Meet the New Voice Cast for Eleven, Mike, Dustin, and Steve
The original actors from the live-action series did not return to voice their animated versions. A completely new cast brings the characters to life in Tales From ‘85.
Brooklyn Davey Norstedt voices Eleven. Luca Diaz plays Mike. Braxton Quinney voices Dustin, and Elisha “EJ” Williams plays Lucas. Benjamin Plessala voices Will, while Jolie Hoang-Rappaport takes on the role of Max. For the older teens, Jeremy Jordan voices Steve Harrington, and Brett Gipson voices Chief Hopper.
The show also introduces several new characters. Odessa A’zion plays Nikki, a transfer student who becomes close with Will. Janeane Garofalo voices Nikki’s mother, Anna Baxter, a biology teacher. Lou Diamond Phillips joins the cast as Daniel Fischer, a friendly store clerk.
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Release Time and Streaming Details for Global Audiences
Stranger Things: Tales From ‘85 consists of 10 episodes, each running for about 30 minutes. The series will be available for streaming on Netflix starting April 23, 2026.
For viewers around the world, the release is global. In the USA, it drops at 12:00 AM Pacific Time (PT). For UK viewers, that is 8:00 AM British Summer Time (BST). In India, the show will be available on April 23 at around 12:30 PM Indian Standard Time (IST). Australia will see the release on the afternoon of April 23 depending on the specific time zone.
The animation studio behind the series is Flying Bark Productions. The Duffer Brothers serve as executive producers along with Shawn Levy and Dan Cohen. The show marks the first major animated expansion of the Stranger Things universe.
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