--- title: Netflix Defends Prank Show Following Backlash description: Netflix has defended its newly announced prank show, Prank Encounters, following criticism that the program is taking advantage of people who are looking for jobs. canonical: https://time.com/5609957/netflix-prank-encounters-stranger-things/ author: Mahita Gajanan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2019-06-19T16:09:47.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:52:45.127Z article:section: Entertainment og:title: Netflix Defends Prank Show Starring 'Stranger Things' Actor Following Backlash og:description: The show is "spooky, supernatural, and over the top," Netflix says og:url: https://time.com/5609957/netflix-prank-encounters-stranger-things/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte23c8518a61c29ea/6989fecd656a3fd3d0bd8745/netflix-prank-show-gaten-matarazzo.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Netflix's Gaten Matarazzo Prank Show og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Netflix Defends Prank Show Starring 'Stranger Things' Actor Following Backlash twitter:description: The show is "spooky, supernatural, and over the top," Netflix says twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte23c8518a61c29ea/6989fecd656a3fd3d0bd8745/netflix-prank-show-gaten-matarazzo.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Netflix Defends Prank Show Starring _Stranger Things_ Actor Following Backlash > Sponsored content. 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Terms and conditions apply. * Savings buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Savings Account. * No ATM fees from Ally Bank at Allpoint and Moneypass ATMs plus we reimburse for fees charged by other ATM owners nationwide up to $10 per statement cycle. * Early direct deposit offers eligible direct deposits up to two days sooner. * Spending buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Spending Account. ## Video: Stranger Things- Season 3 - Official Trailer HD - Netflix [Watch (HLS stream): Stranger Things- Season 3 - Official Trailer HD - Netflix](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/QM2fzrKk.m3u8) (2:50)  _Published 2019-03-20. Stranger Things- Season 3 - Official Trailer HD - Netflix_ by [Mahita Gajanan](https://time.com/author/mahita-gajanan/) ## Mahita Gajanan Gajanan is an editor at TIME. Jun 19, 2019 4:09 PM UTC  Gaten Matarazzo attends the 2019 MTV Movie and TV Awards at Barker Hangar on June 15, 2019 in Santa Monica, California. Gaten Matarazzo attends the 2019 MTV Movie and TV Awards at Barker Hangar on June 15, 2019 in Santa Monica, California.Emma McIntyre—Getty Images for MTV by [Mahita Gajanan](https://time.com/author/mahita-gajanan/) ## Mahita Gajanan Gajanan is an editor at TIME. Jun 19, 2019 4:09 PM UTC Netflix has defended its newly announced prank show, _Prank Encounters_, following criticism that the program is taking unfair (and unfunny) advantage of people who were looking for jobs. A Netflix spokesperson told TIME on Wednesday that the people who took part the show were not under the impression that they were starting full-time jobs. “The pranks in _Prank Encounters_ are spooky, supernatural, and over the top, and everyone had a great time,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “All participants came in with the expectation this was a one-day, hourly gig and everyone got paid for their time.” Last week, the streaming giant said it had ordered eight episodes of the series, a hidden-camera show executive produced and hosted by Gaten Matarazzo. Matarazzo is otherwise known for playing [Dustin on _Stranger Things_](https://time.com/5592801/new-coke-stranger-things-partnership/). “Each episode of this terrifying and hilarious prank show takes two complete strangers who each think they’re starting their first day at a new job,” Netflix said in its initial description of the series, as reported by [_Deadline_](https://deadline.com/2019/06/stranger-things-gaten-matarazzo-host-executive-produce-hidden-camera-prank-show-netflix-prank-encounters-1202632745/). “It’s business as usual until their paths collide and these part-time jobs turn into full-time nightmares.” The description prompted backlash online, as people took issue with its potentially mean-spirited concept, messing with those who are looking for work. > [](https://twitter.com/chrishope50/status/1139774322950590465) Netflix appears to have since updated its press release announcing the show to remove the language that prompted criticism. Its announcement now calls the series “an epic hidden-camera prank show.” Representatives for Matarazzo and Propagate Content, the production company behind the series, did not immediately respond to requests for comment. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5609957/netflix-prank-encounters-stranger-things/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5609957/netflix-prank-encounters-stranger-things/"},"headline":"Netflix Defends Prank Show Starring Stranger Things Actor Following Backlash","datePublished":"2019-06-19T16:09:47.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-04T07:52:45.127Z","description":"The show is \"spooky, supernatural, and over the top,\" Netflix says","url":"https://time.com/5609957/netflix-prank-encounters-stranger-things/","keywords":["entertainment","Television","Netflix","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte23c8518a61c29ea/6989fecd656a3fd3d0bd8745/netflix-prank-show-gaten-matarazzo.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Mahita Gajanan","jobTitle":"Gajanan is an editor at TIME.","url":"https://time.com/author/mahita-gajanan/"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte23c8518a61c29ea/6989fecd656a3fd3d0bd8745/netflix-prank-show-gaten-matarazzo.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Netflix's Gaten Matarazzo Prank Show","caption":"Netflix's Gaten Matarazzo Prank Show","creditText":"Emma McIntyre—Getty Images for MTV","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/entertainment/","name":"entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5609957/netflix-prank-encounters-stranger-things/","name":"Netflix Defends Prank Show Starring Stranger Things Actor Following Backlash"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Stranger Things- Season 3 - Official Trailer [HD] - Netflix","description":"Stranger Things- Season 3 - Official Trailer [HD] - Netflix","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/QM2fzrKk/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2019-03-20T12:20:43.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/QM2fzrKk.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/5609957/netflix-prank-encounters-stranger-things/","duration":"PT2M50S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/5609957/netflix-prank-encounters-stranger-things/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```