The original Stranger Things series ended on December 31, 2025, after five seasons and nearly a decade of terrifying adventures in Hawkins. But Netflix would never allow one of its biggest franchises to simply be turned on its head.
Less than four months after the finale, the universe is expanding again with an animated spin-off called Stranger Things: Tales from ’85. The entire core gang is back, there’s a brave new character joining the mix, and a new monster lurking beneath the snow. Here’s everything you need to know before the animated series Stranger Things arrives.
What is Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 about?
The series begins in Hawkins, Indiana in the winter of 1985. After the chaos of the second season, things should be relatively calm for Eleven, Mike, Will, Dustin, Lucas and Max. The gate to the Upside Down has been closed. The children have settled back into the rhythm of normal teenage life, playing Dungeons and Dragons, having snowball fights and enjoying the hard-won peace and quiet. But there is never peace in Hawkins.
Something terrible has awakened beneath the blanket of ice and snow that covers the city. The official blurb asks three questions that the show promises to answer: Could it be from The Upside Down? From the depths of Hawkins Lab? Or from somewhere else entirely? The gang must try to solve the mystery and save Hawkins once again, this time in a world rendered in a vibrant animated style designed to capture the spirit of the ’80s but still pose real risks.
When does Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 take place?
If you’re wondering where this fits in the timeline, here’s what you need to know. Tales from ’85 is not a sequel and does not continue the season five finale. Instead, it fills a gap that was always skipped in the main series.
Stranger Things covered a very specific time frame over its five seasons. Season 1 took place in the fall of 1983. Season 2 followed in the fall of 1984 and ended with the snowball dance in November of the same year. Season 3 then jumped forward to the summer of 1985 and began when Starcourt Mall was already in full swing.
Tales from ’85 takes place in the winter months between Season 2 (December 1984) and Season 3 (June 1985), when Eleven had just closed the gates, Will had returned from the Upside Down, and the couples formed at the Snow Ball were still new.
Who voices the characters in Stranger Things: Tales from ’85?
One of the biggest talking points surrounding the show is its cast. None of the original live-action actors are returning to voice their characters, and the animated series has assembled an entirely new cast of voice actors to take on the iconic roles.
Here is the full voice cast for Tales from ’85:
- Brooklyn Davey Norstedt as eleven
- Luca Diaz as Mike Wheeler
- Benjamin Plessala as Will Byers
- Braxton Quinney as Dustin Henderson
- Elisha “EJ” Williams as Lucas Sinclair
- Jolie Hoang-Rappaport as Max Mayfield
- Brett Gipson as Jim Hopper
- Jeremy Jordan as Steve Harrington
- Alessandra Antonelli as Nancy Wheeler
- Alysia Reiner as Karen Wheeler
- Jack Griffo as Jeff
- Valeria Rodriguez as Rosario
- Lou Diamond Phillips as Daniel Fischer
- Janeane Garofalo as Anna Baxter
- Robert Englund (Victor Creel in season 4) as Cosmo
- Odessa A’zion as Nikki Baxter
Who is Nikki Baxter in the new Stranger Things series?
Nikki Baxter is the most significant addition to the Stranger Things universe in Tales from ’85. She is described as a punk rock outsider and transfer student who arrives in Hawkins with no interest in making friends.
She sports a striking pink mohawk and a rebellious streak that immediately sets her apart from the existing group. Early images show her wielding a sword-like weapon, suggesting she will take on a frontline combat role against the season’s new threat.
Nikki Baxter is voiced by Odessa A’zion, who is currently one of Hollywood’s most sought-after young actresses following her Oscar-nominated performance in Marty Supreme and a starring role in HBO’s I Love LA.
However, the most important role in the story is her relationship with Will Byers. After the snowball dance of season two, Mike and Eleven are now a couple, as are Lucas and Max. Will feels like an outsider within his own friend group, a dynamic that reflects the broader arc of his character in the original series.
Nikki gives Will someone he can really open up to, someone who understands what it feels like to be different and on the outside looking in. Her character is designed as an entry point for new viewers, a character who arrives in Hawkins with fresh eyes, allowing viewers unfamiliar with the original series to explore the world alongside her.
What is the “Snowshark in the Stranger Things” spinoff?
The main monster in Tales from ’85 is a new creature called the Snow Shark. Unlike previous Stranger Things villains like Mind Flayer, Vecna, or Demogorgon, the Snow Shark is described as something that specifically lurks beneath Hawkins’ snow-covered streets.
Showrunner Eric Robles says “Snowshark” is inspired by “Jaws” and is based on the idea of something sinister hiding invisibly beneath a surface you can’t see through. He described the concept as a meeting of science in the Hawkins lab with upside-down matter, suggesting that the creature’s origins may be linked to both.
The series also features other new creatures, including pumpkin-headed Demogorgons and vine-like monsters, giving the series more of a mix of enemies rather than a single season villain structure.
Is Stranger Things: Stories from 1985 canon?
This is probably the question fans have debated the most since the show was announced, and the answer is a bit complicated – yes, but with an asterisk.
The canon debate exists due to a gap in the Stranger Things timeline. At the end of the second season, Eleven closes the gate to the Upside Down. Things are relatively quiet in Hawkins until the Mind Flayer arrives in the summer of the third season. So how does the gang fight new supernatural creatures in the winter months in between, where do these monsters come from and why does no one ever mention it in Seasons 3, 4 or 5?
Eric Robles addressed this in an interview with IGN. To the first question, he replies that the show has found a creative solution to how new creatures can exist in this supposedly quiet time, which he doesn’t want to reveal. Once the team figured out how to do this, he says, what he calls a mini-universe of adventure opened up within that frozen period of time.
His answer to the second question is clearer. When the third season begins, the children have bigger problems than the pumpkin creatures. From season 4 onwards, they start to worry about Vecna. Characters in Stranger Things don’t tend to reminisce about everything that happened in previous seasons, and the animated series is no different.
However, the most insightful thing Robles has said on the subject is this: You can easily remove this entire series from the timeline and it never existed. Or, as he put it, you can choose to hang out with your best friends and have new adventures.
The final verdict: It’s soft canon
Based on everything the creative team has shared, Stranger Things: Tales of ’85 falls somewhere between full canonization and an entertaining side story. Matt and Ross Duffer are executive producers, and the writing team has worked diligently to ensure the characters end up exactly where they need to be in Season 3. You don’t have to watch it to understand the core story of Stranger Things. But if you want to spend more time in Hawkins with these characters, there’s a lot to enjoy here.
When will Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 be released?
The first season of Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 will be released on Netflix on April 23, 2026. All episodes will be available at once for you to binge-watch.
If you want to get ahead of the Netflix release, there’s also a limited theater option. The first two episodes will premiere in select AMC theaters across the US on April 18, five days before the TV series hits the platform.
How many episodes does Tales from ’85 have and how long is the running time?
The first season consists of 10 episodes with a running time of 24 to 28 minutes each. Here’s the full breakdown based on numbers reported by Cryptic HD Quality for X:
- Episode 1: 27 minutes
- Episode 2: 28 minutes (the longest of the season)
- Episode 3: 24 minutes
- Episode 4: 25 minutes
- Episode 5: 25 minutes
- Episode 6: 26 minutes
- Episode 7: 25 minutes
- Episode 8: 25 minutes
- Episode 9: 24 minutes
- Episode 10: 27 minutes
In total, the season has around four and a half to five hours of content, so you can easily watch it in a single day if you want.
The series also comes at a significant time for the franchise. Premiering just as Stranger Things celebrates its 10th anniversary in summer 2026, Tales from ’85 is both a continuation of the universe and a tribute to how far the story has come since its debut in 2016.
