Are you a Stranger Objects fan who enjoys spotting things in the backdrop of each image, such as movie posters or toys that bring back memories of the 1980s? The production designer and others behind the scenes of the critically acclaimed Netflix series go to great lengths to ensure that each prop is historically authentic, and the writers ensure that every reference made by the characters is something that someone from that era would truly say.
We’ve gathered all of the Easter eggs that you may or may not have noticed peppered throughout Stranger Things season 4 in the same way that we did for seasons 2 and 3.
We’ve arranged the list by episode so that you can follow along as you view each particular installment. Feel free to point out anything that we may have missed in the comments below, and we’ll add it to the article.
Stranger Things Season 4 Episode 1: “The Hellfire Club”
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“El is bullied at school. Joyce opens a mysterious package. A scrappy player shakes up D&D night.”
The Newspaper
We can see four horoscopes in the newspaper Dr. Brenner is reading in 1979, two of which contradict the other two. The first two advise keeping one’s thoughts to oneself, whereas the other two advise getting feedback from others. Everything seems to revolve around “ingenious plans,” “brilliant thinking,” and “amazing” ideas. Interestingly, one of the crossword puzzle answers is “idea.” What exactly does it all imply? You tell us, huh?
Magic 8-Ball
In another scene from the 1979 flashback, Ten, a young test participant, utilises a Magic 8 Ball to respond to a question from Dr. Brenner. This toy was readily accessible in the 1970s and would see a rebirth in popularity in the 1980s, but not until Tyco Toys obtained the rights in 1987, a year after the events of this season.
Ghostbusters
The (rigged) flash card test that Peter Venkman gives a hapless college student at the outset of Ghostbusters feels a lot like the test that Dr. Brenner gives Ten to test his precognitive powers. But it’s not as cruel. Then, of course, everything goes to hell.
Alan Turing
Although we only see El’s hero diorama being presented in class, Will is seen carrying into school a poster board emblazoned with the name Alan Turing, the British scientist who despite his heroics in World War II was prosecuted for his homosexuality and chemically castrated.
The Evil Dead
Jonathan’s room is decorated with a poster for The Evil Dead. This Sam Raimi-directed cult horror classic was released in 1981, and it paved the way for Evil Dead II in 1987, Army of Darkness in 1992, and a lifetime of Bruce Campbell appearances in Raimi superhero films. It also adds to the season’s Nightmare on Elm Street atmosphere. The first Nightmare on Elm St. film has a torn poster for Wes Craven’s The Hills Have Eyes in the background of the workshed, which was a response to Sam Raimi’s placement of a torn poster for Wes Craven’s The Hills Have Eyes in the background of the workshed in Evil Dead.
Fast Times at Ridgemont High
Ridgemont High School is a fast-paced environment.
Given that she returned Fast Times at Ridgemont High to the video store paused at 53 minutes 9 seconds, Steve tells Robin that her crush would welcome her approaches. As you might expect, this is the scene in the 1982 film in which Phoebe Cates’ character removes her red bikini top in a memorable dream sequence.
Eddie Munson
- When we first meet Eddie Munson (think the name’s similarity to Eddie Munster is a coincidence?), we hear “I Was a Teenage Werewolf” by The Cramps playing. We hear their version of “Fever” a few minutes later, too. Yes, that’s common knowledge in the soundtrack list, but people should be listening to The Cramps all the time (but especially around Halloween) so we figured we’d shout it out here.
- Eddie’s jacket is repping bands like Motorhead, WASP, and with a truly awesome Dio backpatch. Former Black Sabbath and Rainbow singer Ronny James Dio’s solo albums had some truly legendary Dungeons & Dragons type album covers, so it figures that Eddie is a big fan. The freaks always have the best taste in music.
The Hellfire Club
- The Hellfire Club is a name with plenty of historical significance, but in the context of Stranger Things, it probably means more as an X-Men comics reference. Both the comics and historical Hellfire Club involved the elites of society, so Eddie has a fun sense of humor naming his club of outcasts that, even as it plays on the “satanic panic” around D&D. But the X-Men’s Hellfire Club were a key factor in Jean Grey’s Dark Phoenix story, and considering how often Stranger Things has flirted with those elements in Eleven’s story, they’re probably having some fun with us, too.
- Eddie reads to The Hellfire Club an article from Newsweek regarding the dangers of teens becoming obsessed with Dungeons & Dragons. The cover appears to be from the March 3, 1986 issue picturing Filipino dictator Ferdinand Marcos and including a reference to the space shuttle Challenger disaster just three months earlier: “NASA’s Fatal Mistake.” The article in question, however, was probably adapted from a September ’85 Newsweek piece entitled, “Kids: The Deadliest Game” about the perils of D&D.
Family Video
Steve and Robin still work at Family Video, a popular video rental store which only just closed its doors (and its online store) for good in March of this year.
E.T.
In the phone booth at Hawkins High, someone has scrawled the graffiti, “E.T., phone home!” This joke referencing the classic 1982 Spielberg film was probably already getting old in 1986.
Star Wars
Dustin has mastered the art of referencing Star Wars when, in attempting to vanquish Vecna in their D&D campaign with a perfect roll of 20, he quotes Han Solo in Empire Strikes Back to his fellow Hellfire Club members: “Never tell me the odds!”
Chrissy Cunningham
Captain of the basketball team Jason Carver calls out to head cheerleader, girlfriend, and tragic Vecna victim Chrissy Cunningham. Cunningham was the surname of the central family in the similarly nostalgia-obsessed Happy Days, whose idyllic portrayal of 1950s life was still in constant re-runs when Stranger Things takes place. Wait, is Stranger Things our Happy Days? We’re in trouble. And, perhaps coincidentally, Jason bears at least a passing resemblance to Ron Howard’s Richie Cunningham from Happy Days.
Nightmare on Elm St.
For our younger readers, kids getting tormented in their dreams and subconscious by a horribly disfigured, shadowy foe, whose harm that is done to them in their minds manifests on the physical plane as well, is straight out of the Freddy Krueger handbook from the Nightmare on Elm Street movies.
Stranger Things Season 4 Episode 2: “Vecna’s Curse”
“A plane brings Mike to California – and a dead body brings Hawkins to a halt. Nancy goes looking for leads. A shaken Eddie tells the gang what he saw.”
Ocean Pacific
Upon meeting Mike Wheeler, Argyle asks him if his colorful shirt is “Ocean Pacific.” The stoner should have probably called it “O.P.,” as the brand was often referred to at the time, but regardless, the beach-inspired clothing line was very popular in the ’80s.
Hulk Hogan
The cab driver at LAX appears to have a Hulk Hogan trading card hanging from his rearview mirror. Hulkster is wearing blue trunks there, which wasn’t his more famous yellow-and-red look he had adopted by 1986.
The Last Dragon
Working at a video store, Robin and Steve are bound to reference many movies of the ’80s, but one poster made a particularly splashy background in this episode: 1985’s The Last Dragon, a martial arts comedy cult classic.
Rink-O-Mania
Mike, Will, and Eleven visit a roller rink called Rink-O-Mania in Lenora Hills. Though still decently popular today, the musical skating locations were a much bigger deal in the ‘80s.
Carrie
Of course, a bunch of mean girls messing with an awkward telekinetic isn’t going to end well for them, even if her powers are currently dormant. The Carrie vibes are strong in this scene, from the increasing public humiliation to something being dumped on poor Eleven, in this case a chocolate milkshake. At least it isn’t animal blood.
VHS Classics
Robin wants Steve to watch Doctor Zhivago with her, but Steve shuns movies on “double VHS.” Because most standard play VHS tapes held 120-160 minutes, the 1966 film’s 3 hour runtime would have necessitated switching tapes at some point, a thankless procedure in the pre-DVD ’80s era.
Family Video is well-stocked with the classics of its era, though, from early Tom Hanks flick The Man With One Red Shoe, to schlock-horror Basket Case, and with prominent displays for rental mainstays like Gremlins, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and National Lampoon’s European Vacation.
Thundercats
In the afterglow of their basketball victory and the festivities afterwards, the team awakens to the news of the murder, but Jason would rather watch Thundercats, a classic Saturday morning cartoon which had just begun the previous September, 1985. Jason was ahead of the curve!
Misfits of Science
One of Max’s flashbacks in this episode shows her watching television when a young pre-Friends Courtney Cox appears on the screen. Max was likely watching Misfits of Science, a one-season wonder in 1985-86 in which Cox played a telekinetic girl named Gloria. Very Eleven-like!
Reefer Rick
Robin is able to track down Reefer Rick through his rental history at the video store. The list not only includes the aforementioned Fast Times at Ridgemont High but also several Cheech and Chong movies, most of which were known for their weed-centric storylines. The pair had just released their final movie together in 1985, Get Out of My Room, but they would still be popular among the stoner set in the ‘80s.
Michael Myers
Eddie Munsen’s father likens Victor Creel to Michael Myers of Halloween, the 1979 film which already had two sequels by 1986. His comparison is ironic given that Creel is played by actor Robert Englund, famous for playing Freddy Krueger in A Nightmare on Elm Street, a different ‘80s horror franchise.
Hellraiser
Pretty strong Hellraiser body horror vibes when we see Vecna in his realm in the Upside Down, right? We wrote much more about Vecna here.
Stranger Things Season 4 Episode 3: “The Monster and the Superhero”
“Murray and Joyce fly to Alaska, and El faces serious consequences. Robin and Nancy dig up dirt on Hawkins’ demons. Dr. Owens delivers sobering news.”
Cerebro
Dustin claims he hacked into the police’s primitive online database with the help of Cerebro. Cerebro is, of course, the fictional device that X-Men founder Professor Charles Xavier uses to enhance his psychic powers and detect mutants from a distance.
Ewoks
Will and Mike are seen watching the animated Star Wars series Ewoks on TV. The show ran from 1985 until 1987, so this particular spin-off cartoon was just getting started. We’re guessing it doesn’t count as SWEU canon, though. Although…that theme tune is low key great and was performed by blues legend Taj Mahal!
Police Academy 3
According to Jonathan, Police Academy 3 is now in theaters. Indeed the release date for the film was March 21, 1986, the very same day that marks the beginning of this season back in episode 1. Mike and company don’t want to go see it, which is probably the right move as the third entry into the Police Academy franchise was not particularly well received (for the record, we do not agree).
Watergate
This episode marks the first reference to Watergate (albeit it will become a more literal reference later on). Perhaps the scandal is a point of focus in history class at Hawkins High School. 1986 was an election year but not a presidential election year.
Stranger Things Season 4 Episode 4: “Dear Billy”
“Max is in grave danger…and running out of time. A patient at Pennhurst asylum has visitors. Elsewhere in Russia, Hopper is hard at work.”
Duck Hunt
Erica notes that if Lucas expects him to cover for him for another week, he’s going to have to get her a Nintendo…WITH Duck Hunt. The classic light gun shooter game was released in April 1984.
Tom Cruise
Nancy has a Tom Cruise poster in her room. The now-60-year-old actor would be just weeks away from appearing in 1986’s Top Gun but was already a heartthrob due to his now iconic underwear dancing scene in 1983’s Risky Business.
Steve McQueen
Yuri likens Hopper to Steve McQueen “The Cooler King”. This is referring to McQueen’s classic character Virgil Hilts from The Great Escape about an American who never stopped trying to escape a German prison camp.
Billy Hargrove’s Grave
Interestingly, Billy’s grave reads as his full name “William Hargrove” and not “Billy Hargrove.” This is significant because in the first full trailer for season 4, there were shots featuring both the William and Billy spellings, suggesting one of them could have been as part of a dream sequence.
Ponch and John
Charlie calls the government guards who set up shop in the Wheeler home “Ponch and John,” referring to the two main characters of the action crime drama, CHiPs, starring Erik Estrada and Larry Wilcox. Ironic nicknames at first, the two lazy-looking agents earn their stripes later.
Little Shop of Horrors
On his bedroom wall, Will displays a small Little Shop of Horrors poster. Although the film adaptation with Rick Moranis wouldn’t arrive until December of that year, the 1982 Broadway play was already widely popular by then.
Elvira
The smuggler’s hideout in the abandoned church where Hopper finds refuge features a very un-holy pinup poster of Elvira, Mistress of the Dark. Although the film of that name wouldn’t arrive until 1988, Elvira’s Movie Macabre, a B-movie showcase that ran from 1981-86, had already made Elvira a cult figure among horror fans.