Stranger Things Returns to Theaters For Epic Event on April 18

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Published Mar 17, 2026, 2:00 PM EDT

A cinematic obsessive with the filmic palate of a starving raccoon, Rob London will watch pretty much anything once. With a mind like a steel trap, he's an endless fount of movie and TV trivia, borne from a misspent youth of watching monster movies on TV, perusing the sun-faded goods at the local video rental shop, and staining his fingers with ink from the Video Movie Guide. Areas of interest include science fiction, film noir, horror flicks, '70s disaster pictures, Bond movies, '90s action, giant robots, dinosaurs, super heroes, and the exuberantly schlocky output of Cannon Films. He also enjoys both Star Trek and Star Wars when they're good, and maybe even more when they're bad. As a Canadian, he also has a vested interest in Canadian movies and TV shows, especially the cheesier ones dubbed "Canuxploitation."

An expert on Marvel Comics, he has also written for the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe, and is a member of the Marvel Research Team. He can frequently be found pontificating on comic-book continuity or bemoaning the misfortunes of the Toronto Maple Leafs on his Twitter account.

Netflix may not be the best friend of movie theaters, as Oscars host Conan O'Brien lampooned this weekend. However, one of the streamer's signature franchises is coming to the big screen this spring. Stranger Things: Tales From '85, the new animated series chronicling an unseen adventure in Hawkins, Indiana, is premiering in select theaters nationwide next month.

The first two episodes of the all-new animated series will make their theatrical debut, days before the series debuts on Netflix. The screenings will take place in 34 AMC theaters across the United States, with showings at 12:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. local time, only on April 18. Tickets will go on sale tomorrow, March 18, at 8 a.m. EST; to see if your local theater will be showing Tales From '85, go to AMCTheaters.com. There will also be additional screenings at the Paris Theater in New York and at Netflix House Philadelphia. Attendees will also receive an exclusive collectible item, while supplies last.

What Is 'Stranger Things: Tales From '85' About?

Set in Hawkins, Indiana in the icy winter of 1985, which puts it between seasons two and three of Stranger Things, Tales From '85 sees Mike, Eleven, and the gang enjoying their lives after seemingly defeating the horrors of the Upside Down. However, a new menace is lurking in the snowy woods, and it's unlike anything they've faced before. The series features the voices of Brooklyn Davey Norstedt as Eleven, Jolie Hoang-Rappaport as Max, Luca Diaz as Mike, Elisha “EJ” Williams as Lucas, Braxton Quinney as Dustin, Ben Plessala as Will, Jeremy Jordan as Steve, and Brett Gipson as Hopper. It will also feature new characters voiced by Odessa A'zion (Marty Supreme), Lou Diamond Phillips (The Chair Company), and Janeane Garofalo (Reality Bites).

Stranger Things: Tales From '85 is created and showrun by animation veteran Eric Robles (Fanboy and Chum Chum, Glitch Techs). Original Stranger Things creators Matt and Ross Duffer and Shawn Levy serve on the series as executive producers. The animated show is the first in a series of Stranger Things offshoots that will haunt Netflix in the months and years to come. Stranger Things: The First Shadow, the stage play that details the origins of the monstrous Henry "Vecna" Creel, has been professionally filmed for release on Netflix in the future, as was exclusively revealed by Collider. The Duffers are also working on a live-action spin-off.

The first two episodes of Stranger Things: Tales From '85 will premiere in select AMC theaters nationwide on April 18; the series will then debut on Netflix on April 23. Stay tuned to Collider for future updates.