Netflix Laid Clues for Die-Hard Stranger Things Fans to Find a Rift Into the Upside Down

Stranger Things fans waited nearly three years for a new season, so Netflix rewarded them with an immersive theater experience that brought the supernatural thriller’s alternate dimension into the real world. The streaming giant held events around the world to build anticipation for the fourth season of Stranger Things, one of its most popular original series. In London, fans could enter a live recreation of the Upside Down, the home of the monsters called Demogorgons. But first, they had to find the secret portal. In the week leading up to the launch, Netflix teased fans with an outdoor campaign in London that held cryptic clues to the hidden location of the Upside Down. '80s-inspired posters held clues to the secret location of the Upside Down. For example, in an ad for Lenora Hills, Calif.—a fictional town in the show—the copy had some irregular capitalized words: “Realm” and “Peached.” This was an anagram for Dereham Place, the site in Shoreditch, east London where fans could find a rift to the Upside Down. The posters had no Netflix or Stranger Things branding but featured numerous references to its storylines, characters and places, such as pizza delivery service Surfer Boy Pizza and Hawkins Power and Light. The design was inspired by the 1980s—the decade in which the show is set—and every detail was true to the era, from the vintage paper stock to retro Pepsi clocks and artwork from ‘80s surf artist Phil Roberts. Starting on May 27, the season’s launch date, fans who had cracked the clues lined up at the “portal”—a large door that looked as if a Demogorgon had broken through it. A secret location in east London opened a portal into the Upside Down. After traveling through a dark tunnel with a flashlight, participants discovered a creepy recreation of a Surfer Boy Pizza restaurant. The set was packed with easter eggs, actors playing mysterious characters and other heart-stopping surprises. A retro photo booth captured the experience for visitors, who received a Stranger Things-themed pizza called a “Demogorgonzola” that resembled the monster. Ad agency Bartle Bogle Hegarty London created the campaign, entitled “A Slice of the Upside Down.” A global celebration Meanwhile, Netflix took over 15 landmarks across 14 countries with Stranger Things activations. Rifts to the Upside Down appeared on monuments including the Empire State Building in New York, Bondi Beach in Sydney, Duomo Square in Milan and the Gateway of India in Mumbai. A rift to the Upside Down opens on Bondi Beach in Sydney. In New York, as dusk approached on May 26, the visual spectacle showed a crack growing on the southern façade of the Empire State Building, transporting onlookers into the Upside Down. As dusk fell in New York, the Empire State Building put on a visual spectacle. In Milan, a similar rift opened on the façade of the historic Palazzo Carminati, and the next morning, Duomo Square was turned back in time with a full ‘80s takeover. The square featured throwback brand logos, a newsstand with old newspapers and magazines, a roller disco and other themed experiences. https://twitter.com/Giant_Spoon/status/1530193453606371328 A landmark show Netflix has split the fourth season of Stranger Things into two parts, with the second volume launching on July 1. It is set six months after the conclusion of Season 3, with the friends grappling with the aftermath of the Battle of Starcourt and separated for the first time. Stranger Things creators Matt and Ross Duffer (known as the Duffer Brothers) have said that the show will end after the fifth season. Season 3 of the sci-fi drama broke Netflix viewership records, with 40.7 million household accounts watching the show in its first four days of release in July 2019. It was the second most popular English-language series in the Netflix Top 10, behind Bridgerton. Netflix has not yet released viewership figures for season 4. Netflix Splits Stranger Things 4 in 2 Parts—and Will End Show After Season 5