Posted in: Current News, Netflix, Stranger Things, TV | Tagged: stranger things 5

Stranger Things 5 "Hell of a Great Experience": Darabont Talks Return

Director Frank Darabont discusses why he put his retirement on hold to direct two episodes of Matt and Ross Duffer's "Stranger Things 5."

Frank Darabont was ready to call it quits after a 40+ year career creating some of the most memorable scenes on screen across film and television with his most memorable projects adapting Stephen King's work with The Shawshank Redemption (1994), The Green Mile (1999), and The Mist (2007), and helped launch one of the biggest franchises on TV adapting Robert Kirkman's The Walking Dead for AMC. With his final project directing an episode of the TNT series Mob City in 2013 that starred TWD alum Jon Bernthal, the writer-director wasn't looking back when an opportunity came his way in the form of Matt and Ross Duffer who reached out to him via his agent to see if he can contribute in helping to direct a few episodes of their fifth and final season of Stranger Things when Dan Tractenberg had to drop out due to his commitments to Predator: Badlands (2025). Darabont spoke to Variety about his fandom of the Netflix series and how he became involved.

Stranger Things 5: Frank Darabont on Returning to the Director's Chair for the Duffers and Their Mutual Fandom for Each Other

Darabont directed episodes three and five, "The Turnabout Trap" and the upcoming "Shock Jock," which will be released in the Netflix series' second batch of episodes on Christmas Day. When asked about how he got involved in the Netflix supernatural thriller series set in the 1980s, "My wife and I were fans of the show from early on. We actually had watched all four seasons three or four or maybe even five times. It was so good. Then one day out of the blue, my agent called me and said, 'The agent in the office next to me represents the Duffer brothers, and he just wanted me to tell you that they're big fans of yours.' I said, 'That's fantastic. That's very flattering. I'm big fans of theirs.' So I thought, 'Well, next time I'm in L.A., I'll get together with them for lunch and just compliment them.' I also was fascinated to know where the heck they came from, because I never heard of the Duffer brothers before they created this huge success on Netflix," he said. "So I had lunch with them when I was down in L.A., and I think about a week later, my agent called me again and said they're inviting you to come direct an episode."

As far as getting back on that horse, "I hadn't done it in a while, but they said it's like riding a bicycle: You don't forget. And they were right. From the first moment on set, there was nothing unfamiliar about the process for me, though it had been about 13 years. The one-episode offer wound up being two episodes and six months in Atlanta. It was a hell of a great experience."

When it came to life in retirement, "Well, once you're retired, it's bliss. My wife and I live on the Central Coast in Monterey, where we don't have the pressures of Hollywood on our backs. I'm enjoying life, and for once I'm no longer the workaholic that I was for almost 30 years in Hollywood," Darabont said. "So I had to wrestle with that question and, of course, talk to my wife about it, because I wasn't going to go to Atlanta unless she came also. I love being married, and I'm not going to be in some place for months without her. We also have five chihuahuas that we would have to take. It was kind of a big move, especially once it became two episodes. We were looking at six months living in a different place. When you're young and single, it's not that big of a deal, but when you're an old fart like me who has sunk roots in a community and is comfortable being an unemployed bum, you have to ask yourself 'Do I really do this?' But ultimately, it was my love for the show, and my wife's love for the show, that kind of overruled all those other concerns, and we said, 'What the heck? Let's do it!' I'm glad we did."

As far as what information Darabont was privy to, "Yeah, they had sent me the scripts and I thought they were terrific. I asked for all of the scripts that they had written thus far so I could track what was going on in the whole thing. They were very generous with sending me those, as long as it was kept under strict secrecy. They're not quite the nuclear codes, but they're pretty close," he said. "The fascinating thing about our culture is how much people want to dig into this stuff instead of waiting to be surprised by what they see on screen. I am the ultimate no-spoilers guy. When I was in junior high, I went to go see Soylent Green, and some asshole fellow students told me before I went in, 'Oh, Soylent Green is people.' I've never forgiven them. It's part of the reason why I'm not on social media, and I'm also reluctant to watch trailers. Too much is given away. If I have an interest in something, I want to enjoy it fresh."

For more on whether Darabont noticed any changes directing today compared to his last project over a decade ago, working with the cast, how the cast adjusted to his style, and mulling his directing future, you can check out the whole interview. The Stranger Things finale premieres in theaters and on Netflix on New Year's Day.

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