--- description: When it comes to 80s references, Stranger Things season 2 is king. Here's a comprehensive guide to the hints sprinkled throughout the show. title: 31 'Stranger Things' References You Might Have Missed image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbd60a5da8d5a798b/6988e39bab6d7781516b0618/strenager-things-2-exorsist.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Television](/tag/television/) ## Television Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Breaking Down the Many _Stranger Things_ References You Might Have Missed by [Ashley Hoffman](/author/ashley-hoffman/) ## Ashley Hoffman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Nov 1, 2017 11:00 AM CUT  Getty Images (3); Moviestore/REX/Shutterstock; Netflix (4); Photo Illustration by Kim Bubello by [Ashley Hoffman](/author/ashley-hoffman/) ## Ashley Hoffman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Nov 1, 2017 11:00 AM CUT **Warning**: This post contains spoilers for _Stranger Things_. In an era filled with reboots that don’t always work, _Stranger Things_ managed to capture countless cultural touchstones of its time with an original story. Creators [Matt and Ross Duffer have confirmed](https://www.wired.com/story/stranger-things-season-2-duffer-brothers-interview/ "undefined") they’re including references on purpose, and the second season is no exception. From the casting to the visual lingo, the new season was chock full of _Stranger Things_ 80s references. Season 2 even worked in a joke about all the nods. After Lucas (Caleb McLaughlin) tells Max (Sadie Sink) what happened to Will (Noah Schnapp) in 1983, she says “I really liked it. I just felt it was a little derivative in parts.” As unique as the second season was, the Duffers are nothing if not deferential when it comes to their influences. Some nods, like _Ghostbusters,_ were impossible to miss. The show gave other references, like the nod to _Children of the Corn,_ less airtime. Here are 31 of the major ones we noticed throughout [_Stranger Things_ season 2](http://time.com/4662118/stranger-things-season-2-details/ "undefined"). ## 1\. **_Ghostbusters_** **(1984)**  Netflix; Columbia Pictures/Getty Images **Episodes one, two, three** The most in your face reference was inarguably _Ghostbusters_. Of course, the [boys in their proton packs biking and singing](https://www.instagram.com/p/BazFaDmnGX7/?hl=en&taken-by=strangerthingstv "undefined") along to the movie’s theme deserves to be the song of fall, winter, spring and summer. But how else was the blockbuster baked into the season about something strange in the neighborhood? Look no further than Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo). Close watchers will note that the _Ghostbusters_ superfan makes a joke about [“crossing the streams”](http://ghostbusters.wikia.com/wiki/Cross%5Fthe%5FStreams "undefined") on Halloween night in episode two. Then in episode three, we see he has a “Ghostbusters Certificate of Anti-Paranormal Proficiency” certificate hanging on his bedroom wall. The trap that Dustin (who goes as Stantz for Halloween) uses to stow his new pet is straight out of _Ghostbusters_. There’s also the strikingly similar way he anxiously approaches the trash can where Dart is rattling around. It owes a lot to [this _Ghostbusters_ scene](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l%5FhNgGVDfNs "undefined") when Stantz moves nervously toward the gooey green Slimer. And finally when it’s time to rise to action, Lucas says, “it’s judgment day.” Stantz and Winston say the [same exact thing](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poZhrsClxX4 "undefined") in _Ghostbusters_. ## 2\. **_Close Encounters of the Third Kind_** **(1977)**  Netflix; Ochs Archives/Getty Images **Episode one** In episode one, when the door to Will’s house creaks open, he stares in horror at the blazing red sky and the crackling lightning. This has got to be a stylistic reference to the iconic Steven Spielberg movie scene when wee little Barry Guiler stands in front of a door as ominous orange light floods in. It’s not the first time the movie got a shout out. In the first season, people also compared Joyce’s flashing Christmas lights to the communication system in the [movie’s grand finale](http://time.com/4436008/stranger-things-netflix-references/ "undefined"). ## 3\. **_Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom_** (1984)  Netflix; Moviestore/REX/Shutterstock **Episodes five and nine** There are more than a few shots and scenes on the show that nod directly to this famed movie. For starters, it just doesn’t get more _Indiana Jones_ than the image of Hopper’s silhouette in the underground tunnel. And in true Jones fashion, he also goes back for his hat in episode five. The Duffers [even told TIME](http://time.com/4985669/stranger-things-cast-duffer-brothers/ "undefined") that the scene when Max (Sadie Sink) drives to the pumpkin patch is essentially a shot-for-shot remake. “That’s exactly like Short Round in _Temple of Doom_,” Ross Duffer said about Jonathan Ke Quan’s character. That’s not the only Jonathan Ke Quan moment on the series. In the finale, Nancy (Natalia Dyer) drives the Shadow Monster out of Will with a fire poker. Jonathan pulled a similar move on Indiana Jones, except he used a torch. What’s more, the episode six scene when Nancy and Jonathan (Charlie Heaton) consider whether to stay in separate rooms at Murray’s house plays out a lot like that _Doom_ scene between Willie Scott and Indiana Jones. ## 4\. _The_ **_Goonies_** **(1985)** **Episode five** Bob (Sean Astin) is the one who figures out that Will’s interconnected drawings actually form a map of Hawkins. Explaining the “game,” Mike tells Bob the objective is the find the X. Bob the brain’s response: “Yeah? What’s at the X? Pirate treasure?” It’s a clever nod to his role in _The Goonies,_ a frequent touchstone for _Stranger_ _Things_. In the adventure comedy, a young Astin played Mikey, who funnily enough, was hunting for the ancient pirate treasure stolen from One-Eyed Willy. You better believe he used a treasure map. ## 5\. **_The Terminator_** (1984) **Episodes one and two** Season 2’s story begins on Oct. 30, 1984\. James Cameron’s now-iconic _The Terminator_ premiered on Oct. 26, 1984\. (Note what appears on the movie theater marquee in episode one.) And just like Arnold promised, this one comes “back” with a quick taste of the movie trailer as Eleven’s flipping through the channels in episode 2. ## 6\. _Aliens_ (1986) Even in reference-filled Duffer Brother-world, it doesn’t get more obvious than using the same actor in a somewhat similar role or the same line. In _Aliens_, Paul Reiser played a deceitful government scientist who tells people to trust him while mostly looking out for himself. This experience probably came in handy when he played sketchy company man Dr. Owens who busts out that old Dr. Brenner (Matthew Modine) line from season one: “I need you to trust me.” In the sixth episode, a Hawkins soldier also invokes the famous [_Aliens_](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuEo09C45Tk "undefined") quote “stay frosty boys.” **Episodes one and six** ## 7\. **_Jaws_** **(1975)**  Netflix; Silver Screen Collection/Getty Images **Episodes one and six** We see a _Jaws_ poster featured in the Byers house a couple of times, but the most overt homage to this movie is Hopper himself. In season 1, ​Hopper comes across as a much more broken Chief Jim Brody from the shark movie — a former city cop who wants to keep kids safe from a ravenous creature. What makes Hopper so much like Brody is that he’s motivated to keep the town safe for the sake of the children. Monsters aside, the other annoyance the film shares with the Netflix series: really silly crimes in a boring town. In the movie, the cop fields a complaint about kids karate chopping picket fences. In _Stranger Things_ season 1, it’s kids stealing garden gnomes. Season 2? A farmer tells Hopper a rival poisoned his pumpkins. (Of course, this turns out to be connected to the Monster, but it’s still in the silly small town crime zone.) ## 8\. **_It_** **(1990)**  Netflix; Bob D'Amico—ABC/Getty Images **Episode eight** Lucas is known for carrying around his fairly useless slingshot. His weapon of choice could be a reference the first adaptation of the horror novel _It_. Beverly Marsh launches a slingshot at the killer clown Pennywise​. How fitting, also, that the actor who plays Mike starred in the 2017 hit reboot film _It_ too. ## 9\. **_Sixteen Candles_** **(1984),** **_The_** **_Breakfast Club_** **(1985) and** **_Pretty in Pink_** **(1986)**  Netflix; Moviestore/REX/Shutterstock **Episodes two and nine** The influence of John Hughes is all over this show. The fact that resident cool kid Steve (Joe Keery) deigned to date studious Nancy already landed us in the Hughes zone in season 1\. But season 2’s ending brought it all home as the Snow Ball alluded to high-stakes dances like the one in _Pretty in Pink_. The show also subverts the social status tropes from this genre. Nancy chooses love over popularity when she gravitates from Steve toward Jonathan. And she even throws Dustin a bone with some encouraging advice on the dance floor. ## 10\. **_C.H.U.D._** **(1984)**  Netflix; New World Pictures/Getty Images **Episodes five and nine** The underground tunnels that Will maps with crayons play a major role in this season, from Hopper’s rescue to one of the missions in the finale. Those Demodog tunnels could be a callback to the New York City subway-dwelling toxic waste monsters that the government covered up in _C.H.U.D._ ## 11\. **Tank’s “Filth Hounds of Hades” (1982)**  Netflix Netflix; Kamaflage Records **Episode nine** Fans got a kick out of newcomer and [Zac Efron lookalike Billy](http://time.com/5000537/zac-efron-dacre-montgomery/ "undefined") (Dacre Montgomery). The metal head was a Metallica fan, but he also has what looks like a poster for this popular album from this lesser known English metal band. The ferocious dogs on the cover could be a possible wink at the Demodogs ripping people apart in Hawkins. ## 12\. **_The Exorcist_** **(1973)**  Netflix; Mondadori Portfolio/Getty Images Netflix; Mondadori Portfolio/Getty Images **Episode nine** In a mom move straight out of the sick kid playbook, Joyce (Winona Ryder) cranks the heat way up to get the monster virus out of Will in the finale. When he’s writhing around in protest and getting violent with his own mother, it’s hard not to think of this classic film about a little girl who is possessed by the antichrist. ## 13\. **_Frankenstein_** (1931)  Netflix; Bettmann Archive/Getty Images **Episode two** In episode two, Eleven watches this one when she’s waiting for Hopper to come home for their scary movie Halloween plans. The black and white movie featured Maria as the naïve kid who befriends the monster. Who does Eleven feel is the more relatable character here? Text the Duffers and let us know when you hear back. ## 14\. **_E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial_** (1982)  Netflix; Sunset Boulevard/Corbis/Getty Images **Episodes two and five** Between Eleven’s wig and those search party flashlights, season 1 was filled with references to this heartwarming movie about an otherworldly creature-human friendship. Season 2 went a bit lighter on the nods, although Eleven dresses as a ghost, Dustin makes a friend in episode three and we find out that Will loves Reese’s Pieces. You could even chalk up the way Dustin baits Dart with deli meats to the fact that the peanut butter candy did the trick in _E.T._ ## 15\. **_Dazed and Confused_** (1993)  No Merchandising. Editorial Use Only. No Book Cover Usage. Mandatory Credit: Photo by Moviestore/REX/Shutterstock (1567045a) Dazed And Confused, Rory Cochrane, Jason London, Sasha Jenson Film and Television Moviestore/REX/Shutterstock **Episode two** Four words. Party in the woods. They’re not the first group of suburban youths to do it, and they won’t be the last. But the soiree Steve and Nancy attend has a strong _Dazed_ vibe. ## 16\. **_Karate Kid_** **(1984)**  Netflix; Columbia Pictures/Getty Images **Episodes two and five** One way _Stranger Things_ connected with non-sci-fi fanatics was with plotlines about the social drama of school. And popping up in surprising ways was this hit martial arts movie that dealt with kids who bully outsiders, a theme throughout the Netflix series. From the way Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) ties her blindfold on like Johnny Lawrence’s headgear to the costume one of the kids at the cool kid party was wearing, there’s no way the Duffers didn’t watch this movie. ## 17\. **_The Shining_** **(1980)**  Netflix; Warner Brothers/Getty Images **Episodes one and two** The scene in the _The Shining_ that follows the doomed family on their way to the Overlook hotel looks a little like the shot of Joyce and Will’s car trip to Hawkins Lab in episode one. If that’s not horrifying enough, the similarities continue. The most terrifying California transplant to ever pick someone up from the video arcade, Billy, studied the horror film’s villain — [another total heartthrob Jack Torrance](http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/power-rangers-dacre-montgomery-interview-sequel-red-ranger-jason-987781 "undefined") — for inspiration. It showed. In episode two, after Max grabs the wheel to swerve away from the kids away in their _Ghosbusters_ costumes, the way he says “that was a close one huh!” is creepily Jack-like. ## 18\. **Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” (1982)** **Episode two** MJ dominated the ’80s with the monster hit music video for “Thriller,” which features dancers as a bunch of very talented zombies who ruin date night. The season first opens on glowing gravestones decorating a Hawkins lawn for Halloween, featuring a skeletal hand reaching out from the ground that echoes the gravesite scene of this iconic music video. And at Tina’s party in episode two, someone also dresses as the King of Pop from the 1982 “Billie Jean” video. ## 19\. **_The Thing_** **(1982)**  Netflix; Universal/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock **Episodes one and four** Everywhere you look, you’ll find explicit references to this John Carpenter movie. A sampling: a Hawkins’ lab worker goes to town on the assorted mix of Upside Down growths with his flame-throwing device in season 2, recalling the movie scene Mr. Clarke watched at home in season 1\. Also, in _The Thing_, the alien invades other life forms to spy on everyone, so Will hosting the monster inside his innocent little body makes him a bit like a powerful entity that could shapeshift to look like its victims. Another somewhat _Thing_\-like _Stranger Things_ thing: the Hawkins lab experiment where the nerdy guy creates a swirling smoke effect. ## 20\. **_Lord of the Rings_**  Netflix; Moviestore/REX/Shutterstock **Episode four** Will has a wizard thing. There’s that drawing hanging on his bedroom wall when Joyce is comforting him, and his role in the Dungeons and Dragon game is Will the wise, which serves as the title of episode four. They even named a street “Mirkwood” after the forest in the J.R.R. Tolkien’s epic book series. In season 1, Chief Hopper specifically told the kids “this isn’t some _Lord of the Rings_ book.” But like Will, Gandalf is temporarily pronounced dead in _Fellowship of the Ring_ before he comes back in _The Two Towers_. Sorry Hopper, but some of these nuggets seem pretty Tolkein-y to us. ## 21\. **_Gremlins_** **(1984)**  Netflix; Warner Bros. Pictures/Amblin E/Sunset Boulevard/Corbis via Getty Images **Episode three** The Duffers teased a major [_Gremlins_ influence](http://variety.com/2017/tv/news/remote-controlled-stranger-things-season-2-duffer-brothers-1202454897/ "undefined"). In the Joe Dante movie, cuddly monsters transform into reptile monsters out to ruin everything. _Stranger Things_ builds on this trope with a heartwarming take on the cute creature turned deathly threat with Dustin’s relationship to Dart. ## 22\. **_Poltergeist_** **(1982)**  Netflix; Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer/Getty Images **Episode five** While the rest of us wait for a birthday alert for a convenient excuse to reconnect with old friends on Facebook, Eleven simply blindfolds herself to beam into the void via TV to see what they’re up to. The Duffer brothers could be drawing a parallel to _Poltergeist_. Both the visual and Eleven’s power have quite a bit in common with the movie, where the television set also works as a medium for Carol Anne, a human channel for supernatural beings. ## 23\. **_Super 8_** **(2011)**  Netflix; Paramount/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock **Episode six** The Duffer brothers have already told us that they don’t only geek out on ‘[80s references](https://www.thedailybeast.com/inside-stranger-things-the-duffer-bros-on-how-they-made-the-tv-hit-of-the-summer "undefined"), so this could be a contender. In season 2 the _Stranger Things_ kids return to the abandoned junkyard and bus. The way the Demodogs attack the roof invites comparison to the alien attack in this [Spielberg movie](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOYwefBM2ac "undefined"). ## 24\. **_Shawshank Redemption_** **(1994)** **Episode six** The episode six scene where Steve and Dustin peer through the dark underground tunnel Dart created could be reminiscent of work by a man who looms large over the show: Stephen King. In a pivotal scene from the author’s _Shawshank_ _Redemption_, a warden takes down a poster of Rita Hayworth to discover a dark escape route. The shots are strikingly similar. ## 25\. **_Resident Evil_** **(1996)**  Netflix; Legacy/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock **Episode nine** When Eleven is facing off against the gate in the finale, Hopper plays defense and shoots at the Demodogs. The visuals could be a hat tip to this sci-fi horror video game, in which the player has to kill off zombie dogs. This isn’t he only video game _Stranger Things_ references, as the Duffers have [spoken about](http://www.ign.com/articles/2016/08/26/how-silent-hill-dark-souls-and-the-last-of-us-influenced-stranger-things "undefined") Silent Hill and The Last of Us as their nerd inspiration. ## 26\. **_The Mist_** **(2007)**  Netflix; Dimension Films/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock **Episodes one, two and six** Some of the weird weather — like the mist that appears to spell trouble throughout the season — could be a way the show shares DNA with the Stephen King adaptation _The Mist_. Side note: Mrs. Wheeler also listens to Barbra Streisand sing about “misty water-colored memories” in “The Way We Were” in the tub in the finale. Maybe it’s nothing, but there’s a lot of mist happening. ## 27\. **_Escape From New York_** **(1981)**  Netflix; Avco Embassy/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock **Episode seven** To the tune of Jon Bon Jovi’s “Runaway,” Eleven arrives in the big city in search of Kali, another one of Dr. Brenner “science projects.” There, she takes a much tougher crew for a spin. From the cackling Axel’s hair to the wasteland vibe, top to bottom, we’re firmly in _Escape_ territory. While the movie’s protagonist Snake Plissken didn’t have as much fun when he encountered the “crazies” in post-apocalyptic New York, the episode’s indisputably a pastiche of the cult hit. ## 28\. **_Godzilla vs. Biollante_** **(1989)** Everyone relies on Will’s drawings of the season 2 monster. The town illustrator prodigy thing might reference some original kids who nailed the art form. In this Godzilla movie, [redditor October 103197](https://www.reddit.com/r/GODZILLA/comments/5xy8tw/possible%5Fgodzilla%5Freference%5Fin%5Fseason%5Ftwo%5Fteaser/ "undefined") notes that a psychic character [draws an illustration](https://imgur.com/kPujiY2 "undefined") that predicts the monster. **Episode four** ## 29\. **_Witness_** **(1985)** **Episode nine** Name-checked in an interview the Duffers gave to [_Wired_](https://www.wired.com/story/stranger-things-season-2-duffer-brothers-interview/ "undefined"), this movie features Harrison Ford as a police officer smoothly [leading a lovely barnyard dance](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKM0nH6-NnI "undefined"). The show may have tapped his Amish dance partner Rachel (Kelly McGillis) in the film for inspiration for the way the timid middle schoolers work the room in the finale. ## 30\. **_Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980)_** **Episode six** Mike references the Death Star in episode three and he’s very attached to his Millennium Falcon toy that Eleven moved around with her mind in season 1, but the connection to the galaxy far, far away doesn’t stop there. When Mike desperately tries to warn everyone that the Hawkins lab “soldiers” fell right into the Shadow Monster’s trap, the “graveyard,” he screams “it’s a trap!” This moment could be calling back to a similar scene in _The Empire Strikes Back_ when Princess Leia warns Luke he’s waltzing right into Darth Vader’s trap. She also screams, “it’s a trap!” ## 31\. _Mad Max_ (1979) **Episode one** In the first episode, we learn that Max (Sadie Sink) is the gamer behind the handle “Mad Max” beating the boys. The name comes from the title of the Mel Gibson sci-fi flick movie. If you had any doubt this is an overt reference, the video arcade employee even calls her “road warrior,” which was the title of the 1981 sequel. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4978928/stranger-things-movie-references/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4978928/stranger-things-movie-references/"},"headline":"Breaking Down the Many Stranger Things References You Might Have Missed","datePublished":"2017-11-01T11:00:19.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T04:58:24.847Z","description":"When it comes to 80s references, Stranger Things season 2 is king. 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