Facts About Stranger Things

A kidnapping movie inspired it

When the Duffers were going through ideas for the show, one of their original concepts and inspirations was from the 2013 movie Prisoners. In the movie the father goes to extreme lengths in an attempt to retrieve his kidnapped daughter.

The Duffers explored the emotional turmoil of a parent but then came to the decision to focus on the children. Somehow, they came to find the addition of a monster worked well with the children finding their missing friend.