Stranger Things creators the Duffer Brothers in talks with Paramount over huge new deal

The final season of Duffer Brothers’ Stranger Things will begin in November

Stranger Things creators Matt and Ross Duffer (aka the Duffer Brothers) are reportedly in talks with Paramount over a huge overall deal that would see them leave Netflix and reunite with Cindy Holland.

According to reports in both Variety and Deadline, the brothers are in advanced talks with big-spending Paramount, which finally merged with Skydance last week in an US$8.4bn deal, for an overall pact that would cover both streaming series and films with theatrical releases.

The Duffer brothers have been under a lucrative overall deal with Netflix since 2019, covering both series and films.

The brothers also have a production company, Upside Down Pictures, which they launched as part of their overall deal with Netflix. The company’s name is a reference to the alternate dimension in Stranger Things.

If a deal comes to fruition, it would reunite the duo with Paramount’s newly installed chair of direct-to-consumer, Holland, who commissioned sci-fi drama Stranger Things during her storied tenure leading Netflix’s original programming. Matt Thunell, who leads the new Paramount Television Studios, was also at Netflix as VP of original series from 2015 until 2022.

There is still a large amount of Stranger Things material in the works at Netflix. The fifth and final season is set to premiere later this year, with the eight episodes being released in two batches, on November 26 and December 25, before the finale on December 31. An animated spin-off, Stranger Things: Tales From ‘85, and another live-action spin-off are also in the works.

Two other Duffer brothers-produced series are set to launch on Netflix next year: psychological horror Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen and supernatural mystery drama The Boroughs.

The talks are another statement of intent from Paramount’s new chair and CEO David Ellison and his leadership team, after Paramount stunned the media world earlier this week with its US$7.7bn, seven-year deal to acquire UFC rights in the US.

On Wednesday, Paramount’s top team held a press conference in Los Angeles to further flesh out their plans for the company, with several noteworthy comments.

Executives said there are no plans to spin off or sell its cable assets, unlike rivals Comcast and Warner Bros Discovery, with plans instead to “redefine” its portfolio of brands for a new generation of viewers.

In a wide-ranging discussion, the executive team outlined how they plan to change the business now the long-gestating merger deal is complete.

That does not involve casting its cable networks adrift, according to George Cheeks, chairman of the TV Media division which houses legacy brands such as Comedy Central, MTV, Paramount Network, VH1, BET, Nickelodeon and Smithsonian.

While acknowledging that the cable television ecosystem is severely challenged (Paramount’s TV Media revenue was down 6% year-over-year in the most recent quarter, while profit was down 15%), Cheeks said he feels there is “a lot to preserve there,” with discussions underway about which “iconic franchises” can migrate into a streaming environment.

That means BET Networks, which has been shopped around to potential suitors for the past couple of years, is no longer up for sale. On the contrary, Cheeks said they plan to invest in that brand, which he described as a “pretty important building block” of the company’s streaming strategy.

President Jeff Shell, who was formerly the CEO of NBCUniversal, also said he had received numerous calls from people with ideas to rejuvenate the MTV brand, which was once on the very crest of popular culture.

Ellison said the decision not to sell off its linear assets has always been part of his plan, dating back to his first meeting with former owner Shari Redstone about taking over Paramount. “Our intention is to keep the company together and invest through that lens long term,” he said.

The Duffer brothers talks, the UFC deal and the press conference cap a newsworthy first week in charge for Ellison.

The fact the new Paramount leadership team seems disinterested in selling its linear networks is the second somewhat unexpected strategic move this week, after the company’s bombshell US$7.7bn, seven-year deal for UFC rights in the US.

With the UFC’s stateside popularity continuing to grow under Ari Emanuel-led owner TKO, and a dearth of other sports rights available over the next few years, the media rights deal instantly makes Paramount+ a significant long-term player in the American streaming ecosystem.

Of its streaming business, Holland said Paramount+ is starting from a strong position with its popular Taylor Sheridan universe, Star Trek franchise and the CBS content that streams on the SVoD platform the day after it premieres on linear.

The streamer, which has primarily commissioned projects produced within its own ecosystem, is also open to greenlighting shows developed and produced by third-party studios and suppliers, noted Holland. It is not, however, interested in made-for-streaming movies, with Paramount instead looking to grow its theatrical business with around 20 releases per year.

Overall, Holland’s goal is to expand the content pipeline at Paramount+, at the same time as programming it to appeal to a broad range of audiences.

Elsewhere, execs discussed the US$2bn in cost savings they have previously identified, with Shell confirming that, as expected, lay-offs are forthcoming. The company is looking to make those cuts in one big round of lay-offs, he said, rather than staggering them over multiple quarters. “We do not want to be a company that has lay-offs every quarter,” he said.