Shawn Levy has been a part of Stranger Things ever since the first season, and continues to be a part of the show’s franchise by executive producing the new spin-off, Stranger Things: Tales from ’85. He also has a Star Wars film, Star Wars: Starfighter on its way to the theatres starring Ryan Gosling and Mia Goth among others.
Levy has directed two episodes of the Netflix show every season and has been a producer on the show for all its seasons. Thus, after than the Duffer Brothers, he’s probably the person who has known and loved the show’s story and the production process the best. Levy has recently revealed that his experience on Stranger Things has inspired the way he made Star Wars: Starfighter.
Shawn Levy on how Stranger Things inspired Star Wars: Starfighter
Shawn Levy has directed and produced Star Wars: Starfighter which wrapped filming in December 2025, and is currently in post production. The story of the film is yet to be revealed, but it is going to be set five years after the events of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. While we cannot say anything regarding the film’s story, we can say that it will have elements inspired from Stranger Things.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Shawn Levy was asked to share something about Star Wars: Starfighter. He said,
“If I’ve learned anything on Stranger Things, it’s that you can get intimidated by the scale of franchise expectation. But you will lose your way if that’s your focus. I’ve learned the need to stay rooted in character, and themes and relationships on screen. Yes, there’s spectacle and scale, just like Stranger Things.”
Stranger Things has been known for its storytelling, and action, but it is known even more for its characters, their relationships and how each character has been developed over the years. Making sure that the character stories are well mapped out, and never ignored is one way to ensure that the show/film leaves a lasting effect on audiences. Levy has learnt how to balance that with the grandness of the plot from Stranger Things, which has inspired the way in which he has directed and produced his upcoming Star Wars film. Levy continued,
“And of course, Star Wars and Starfighter has spectacle and scale and adventure at a level I’ve never done in my whole career. But like Stranger Things, it’s also very much anchored in a human scale character-sized story. I think that if I can balance the epic and the intimate the way the Duffers have with Stranger Things, I’ll make a movie and an original and new Star Wars adventure that can be really satisfying to fans and audiences.”
Star Wars: Starfighter will star Ryan Gosling, Flynn Gray, Matt Smith, Mia Goth, Aaron Pierre, Simon Bird, Jamael Westman, Daniel Ings, and Amy Adams. The film is written by Jonathan Tropper and produced by Shawn Levy and Kathleen Kennedy. Lucasfilm and Shawn Levy’s 21 Laps Entertainment are the production companies behind the show.
Star Wars: Starfighter is scheduled to be released in theatres on May 28, 2027. All episodes of Stranger Things are streaming on Netflix.
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Edited by Sohini Biswas