Duffy Brothers turns to theaters, Netflix responds to creator's departure

You are 40 years old now. Don’t wait until you wake up at 60 and regret that you didn’t do it 20 years ago.% Talking about the Duffy brothers leaving Netflix, co-CEO Ted Sarandos used this sentence to explain his attitude.He believes that the two have been working on TV series for ten years and want to try a large-scale theater movie, so they should realize this wish.He believed the Duffys would succeed.

《Stranger Things》(Stranger Things) creators Matt Duffy and Ross Duffy announced in August 2025 that they had signed an exclusive four-year agreement with Paramount, covering movies and television, and would officially transfer in April 2026.Matt has also said before that what attracts them most is the opportunity to do theatrical projects, and Netflix's distribution method is different from this goal.

The series rights for 《Stranger Things》 still belong to Netflix, and more content may be developed in the future.

Another creator who left was Shawn Levy.He served as the show's director and executive producer, working with Netflix for about a decade before striking a deal with Disney's 20th Television through 21 Laps Entertainment.The new agreement is scheduled to take effect in October 2027.

Levy is currently directing Star Wars: Starfighter for Lucasfilm, which is scheduled to be released in 2027.Sarandos believes that he will invest a long time in the Star Wars series in the future, so signing with Disney is an understandable choice.

He puts the problem in practical terms: When a creator with a comprehensive collaboration agreement also has commitments to projects elsewhere, both partners are constantly competing for his time.Levy's future focus is on Disney, and having the agreement there makes it easier to coordinate these arrangements.

Netflix and Levy still have projects in development, including a hockey-themed series called The Sticks.Sarandos said that these works will continue and the two parties will cooperate on many projects.

When Levy announced the Disney deal, his reasons were more personal.He has always agreed with Disney's concept of storytelling and feels that it feels like home.