Stranger Things Spin-Off Showrunner Reveals How It Fits into Official Canon

written by Craig Ellison

April 16, 2026 3:32 pm

Stranger Things Spin-Off Showrunner Reveals How It Fits into Official Canon — Image credit: Legion-Media

Eric Robles finally sets the record straight on how Stranger Things: Tales from '85 connects to the live-action series — and what it means for canon.

So, Stranger Things is officially at that point where there's just too much lore to keep straight. Remember when it was just a bunch of kids in Hawkins messing with Christmas lights and fighting faceless monsters? Now the franchise has so much extra stuff—comics, novels, even stage plays—that it takes effort just to know what's considered 'real.' And if that wasn't enough, Netflix is rolling out its first legit TV spin-off: Stranger Things: Tales from '85, an animated series set in the gap between Seasons 2 and 3.

As you might expect, fans immediately started combing through the first trailers, looking for clues about whether this show is rewriting or contradicting things from the original. Not exactly a wild reaction, considering the new footage is full of ’big’ moments that go completely unmentioned in any previous version of Stranger Things.

The Big Canon Question

Naturally, folks have questions: Is Tales from '85 actually "canon"—the kind of stuff you need to treat like gospel in the main Stranger Things universe—or is this just side adventure territory?

Showrunner Eric Robles tried to clear things up, but if anything, his answer makes this even more complicated (and a little funny, honestly). Asked if the animated series counts as real-deal canon, Robles basically said: that’s above my pay grade.

'Look, that’s up to the Duffer brothers to decide how much canon they want or not. What this is, is it’s canon in the sense of, are we staying true to the characters, their personalities? That part of it is canon. The personality part is canon, because we are staying as true as we can to the personalities of the characters. How the stories are evolving, and how big this thing can get, depending on the love, and if everybody wants more of this stuff, then it just starts becoming an organic thing of itself. It starts telling its own narrative. So I can’t say if it’s canon, because I don’t at this point know, it’s just growing into this organic, fun story. But what is canon is the personalities, it is the characters.'

Which, in plain language, means the show is canon… if you only care about character vibes. Not the specific events, storylines, or whatever new plot holes might pop up. Only that Dustin is Dustin, Lucas is Lucas, etc.

Who’s Actually Guiding This Thing?

Tales from '85 is a Netflix production, but the original Duffer Brothers are very much involved behind the scenes. Robles says they had a hand in development, and even the writers from the main show helped set the animated series' tone.

A lot of the hands-on continuity work landed with Caitlin Schneiderhan—she’s done writing duties on the main live-action Stranger Things too. Robles says she basically joined this team to keep the animated show as close as possible to the core relationships and personalities fans already know. So if you spot Max acting completely out of character, take it up with her.

Monsters? Sure. But It’s Really About Friendship (Supposedly)

Robles is pretty blunt about the real draw: for all its Demogorgons and alternate dimensions, Stranger Things works because of its core group dynamic. The animated show is supposed to be all about getting more time with the kids—not just fighting monsters, but watching Lucas and Max's relationship develop, or seeing whatever weird scheme Dustin cooks up now.

'At its core, Stranger Things isn't about monsters, it’s about relationships, and that’s what we’re continuing, is the story of these relationships that are growing. You get to spend time with Lucas and Max in a way that you didn’t have time for in live-action, or you get to spend time with Dustin on new adventures, and what he’s scheming up. This is the fun that we’re promising. But as far as the word "canon," I can’t promise you that. All I can promise you is we’re going to stay true "canon" to the personalities of these characters, and then we’ll see where the adventures grow from there.'

How Does This Fit with Everything Else?

As for all the hand-wringing about retcons and what 'counts,' Robles makes a pretty good comparison for kids of the ’80s and folks who remember The Real Ghostbusters cartoon. If you’re expecting every monster from the animated show to show up (or even get mentioned) in Stranger Things Season 5, it’s just not going to happen—and that’s okay, apparently.

According to Robles: he grew up with the original Ghostbusters movie, and then the zany animated show—the two didn’t always line up, and that didn’t ruin anything. He’s hoping newer fans today can just enjoy new adventures with their favorite characters, without analyzing plot contradictions to death.

Is Anything Actually Contradicted?

For now, none of the trailers for Tales from '85 have revealed anything that outright defies what's happened on the mother ship show (at least, nothing obvious). Still, the fact that this animated spin-off introduces new monsters and events that never even rate a mention in five seasons of Stranger Things has everyone on high alert for franchise-breaking retcons.

Who’s Back from Hawkins?

Here’s what you can expect, character-wise:

The main Hawkins gang is present, facing their coldest winter yet and—because it's Hawkins—a brand new set of supernatural problems.
That means more time with Lucas, Max, Dustin, and presumably the rest of the usual suspects.

Basically, your Stranger Things favorites are about to get animated, possibly go on adventures that exist in a Schrodinger's canon state, and, if Robles gets his way, you'll just accept it as more time hanging out with these kids. Whether it all ultimately fits, or just floats somewhere next to the Ghostbusters cartoon in pop culture memory, is still up in the air.