Posted in: Netflix, Preview, Stranger Things, streaming, TV | Tagged: deadpool, netflix, ryan reynolds, season 5, shawn levy, stranger things

Stranger Things/Deadpool Crossover? "It's On The Table": Shawn Levy

We live in the era of shared universes and crossovers. That's just a face. And sometimes, those shared universes and crossovers can create some strange pop culture bedfellows. A perfect example of that came up during tonight's Emmy Awards celebration when Stranger Things EP & Director Shawn Levy discussed how he's building out the "Stranger Things" Cinematic Universe (STCU). "Yes, we are building out the STCU, and now that I'm spending time with [Marvel Studios] Kevin Feige, I'm learning a lot about how to manage a universe. So I'm taking those skills and applying them to the STCU," Levy revealed. And in case you were wondering why he was hanging out with Feige, Levy has been tapped to direct the third film in the Ryan Reynolds-starring Deadpool film franchise. Of course, that begs the obvious question. Will we be seeing a crossover between Deadpool and the popular Netflix series? Usually, that's one of those fun, throw-away questions that a reporter can usually work with. But this time, Levy didn't look like he was joking when he gave his response.

"Funnily enough, ['Deadpool' star] Ryan [Reynolds] and I were trying to figure out how in the world could we do a 'Deadpool'-'Stranger Things' crossover. We haven't cracked it yet, but it's on the table," Levy revealed. Now, here's a look at Levy sharing with Variety how he's been doing his "shared universe" homework with Feige, as well as how he and Reynolds have already been brainstorming a chance for The Merc with a Mouth to visit the Upside Down or Hawkins, Indiana:

Now here's a look back at the tweet from the show's writers showing off the Season 5 episode grid, just begging to be filled with details that will never see the light of day until after the series has wrapped its run (probably). Side note? Can you please consider bringing back Video Store Fridays? Just a thought…

And here's that clean dry erase board in the streaming series writers' room from earlier that month, adorned with a hand-drawn "Stranger Things 5" logo to make it all official:

"We thought Season 4 was going to be eight [episodes], and they were going to be regular length. So if you had interviewed us before four, that's what I would've said. I think we're aiming for eight again. We don't want it to be 13 hours. We're aiming for more like 10 hours or something," Matt explained during an interview with Collider. "I think it's going to be longer than Season 1 because we just have so much to wrap up, but I don't think it's going to be as long as Season 4." As Ross says, much of that has to do with them not having to spend as much time building things up when the season begins. "This season, for instance, it was two hours before our characters even realized the monster was killing people in Hawkins," he explained. "They know what the threat is now, and so that will help speed it up." In the following highlight from an interview with Variety, the Duffer Bros drop a few more clues about what viewers can expect from the spinoff they have in mind:

So When Are They Starting Work on That "Different" Spinoff?

Ross Duffer: "There's a version of it developing in parallel [to season 5], but they would never shoot it parallel. I think actually we're going to start delving into that soon as we're winding down and finishing these visual effects, Matt and I are going to start getting into it."

Matt Duffer: "The reason we haven't done anything is just because you don't want to be doing it for the wrong reasons, and it was just like, 'Is this something I would want to make regardless of it being related to Stranger Things or not?' And definitely. Even if we took the 'Stranger Things' title off of it, I'm so, so excited about it. But it is not… It's going to be different than what anyone is expecting, including Netflix."

It's been six months since the Battle of Starcourt, which brought terror and destruction to Hawkins. Struggling with the aftermath, our group of friends are separated for the first time — and navigating the complexities of high school hasn't made things any easier. In this most vulnerable time, a new and horrifying supernatural threat surfaces, presenting a gruesome mystery that, if solved, might finally put an end to the horrors of the Upside Down.

Netflix's Stranger Things stars Winona Ryder (Joyce Byers), David Harbour (Jim Hopper), Millie Bobby Brown (Eleven), Finn Wolfhard (Mike Wheeler), Gaten Matarazzo (Dustin Henderson), Caleb McLaughlin (Lucas Sinclair), Noah Schnapp (Will Byers), Sadie Sink (Max Mayfield), Natalia Dyer (Nancy Wheeler), Charlie Heaton (Jonathan Byers), Joe Keery (Steve Harrington), Maya Hawke (Robin Buckley), Priah Ferguson (Erica Sinclair), Brett Gelman (Murray), Cara Buono (Karen Wheeler), and Matthew Modine (Dr. Brenner).

Jamie Campbell Bower (The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, Sweeney Todd), Eduardo Franco (Booksmart, The Binge), and Joseph Quinn (Catherine the Great, Howards End) joined the cast of Stranger Things as series regulars. Tom Wlaschiha (Game of Thrones), Sherman Augustus (Into the Badlands, Westworld), Mason Dye (Bosch, The Goldbergs), Nikola Djuricko (Genius, In The Land of Blood and Honey), and Robert Englund (A Nightmare on Elm Street Franchise, V) also joined in recurring roles. In addition, Brett Gelman's Murray Bauman was promoted to series regular. In addition, Amybeth McNulty (Anne with an E), Myles Truitt (Black Lightning), Regina Ting Chen (Queen of the South), and Grace Van Dien (The Village) joined the cast.

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