‘Stranger Things’ EP Shawn Levy on How the Series Gave Him the Courage to Go Even Bigger [VIDEO INTERVIEW]

When director/producer Shawn Levy signed on to executive produce a new Netflix series called Stranger Things, he had no idea of the ways the show would change him or the course of his career. Prior to teaming up with the Duffer Brothers, Levy had mostly directed family-friendly comedies (Cheaper by the Dozen, Night at the Museum) and rom coms (Just Married, Date Night). He also produced a range of films, some of which he directed, others he collaborated on, including The Spectacular Now, and the 2016 Best Picture nominee Arrival, for which he was part of the nominated team of producers.

Joining forces with the Duffers and sharing a love for 1980s pop culture, they brought Stranger Things into the world. Now, a decade later, Levy has worked on every season not only as a producer, but directing several episodes as well. As he tells it, he never meant to step into the director’s chair, leaving it all in the capable hands of the brothers. But then they had so much writing to do that he volunteered to help out with one episode, which inevitably led to another and then eventually to ten.With the final season upon us, I recently sat down with Levy to talk about learning from the Duffer Brothers, watching the show’s young stars become successful adults, and how this series gave him the courage to take on projects he never could have imagined before, from Deadpool & Wolverine to Star Wars.

The first three episodes of the fifth and final season of Stranger Things are now currently streaming with the following three on Christmas Day with the series finale on New Year’s Eve.

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Karen Peterson

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