Is Hawkins in ‘Stranger Things’ based on Durham? What the Duffer Brothers say
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Duffer Brothers say Hawkins blends Durham, Georgia locations, Stephen King tropes.
- Show roots include Montauk theory, 1980s horror films and fictional small towns.
- Season 5 will roll out in three volumes late 2025, with theaters and streaming on Netflix.
With the first installment “Stranger Things” Season 5 releasing on Thanksgiving Eve, the show’s Durham connections are top-of-mind for many local readers.
The sci-fi Netflix streaming hit follows a group of kids in the 1980s in the town of Hawkins, Indiana, as their carefree adolescence is rudely interrupted by a monstrous hellscape erupting from underneath their town. The story captures the sweet nostalgia of growing up in the rad 80s while getting pretty intense with some end-of-the-world action and suspense.
The show is created, written and directed by Matt and Ross Duffer, who are known professionally as The Duffer Brothers. They are proud Durham natives and graduates of Charles E. Jordan High School, growing up near a tobacco farm not far from Duke Forest. Each season, they sprinkle subtle (and sometimes not-so-subtle) references to their hometown across episodes.
So with all that Cornwallis Roading and Jordan Laking and Eno Rivering going on, might Hawkins actually be based on the Bull City?
It’s not the first time we’ve wondered that, and a few years ago, we got the chance to ask them directly. Here’s what Matt Duffer told The News & Observer in a previous interview.
Is Hawkins, Indiana, based on Durham, NC?
Yes and no.
Instead of being a based on a single place, Hawkins is actually a mix of places and things, Duffer told us.
The town of Hawkins is a combination of conspiracy theories, fictional towns in Stephen King books, suspense scenes in 1980s horror movies, and locations in Georgia (where the show is mostly filmed), as well as Durham, Duffer said.
Many believe “Stranger Things” is based on an alleged government experiment called “The Montauk Project,” theorized to have involved psychological warfare techniques conducted by the U.S. government at Montauk Air Force Station on Long Island, N.Y. reported ScienceAlert in 2016. When Netflix picked up the show in 2015, the project was titled “Montauk.”
When is “Stranger Things” Season 5?
The fifth season will be released in three installments: Volume 1 (episodes 1-4) will be released on Netflix Wednesday, Nov. 26, followed by Volume 2 (episodes 5-7) on Thursday, Dec. 25 and the season finale on Wednesday, Dec. 31.
Fans across can watch the finale on the big screen at select theaters nationwide, Netflix announced this fall. (The finale will also stream on Netflix.)
