‘Stranger Things’ writers ominously reference an infamous bomb that lost $130 million as a final season inspiration

We don’t know a lot about the fifth season of Stranger Things other than the fact it marks the end of the all-conquering Netflix behemoth, but the latest point of reference made by the writers has at least stirred up some concern.

Not that it’s got anything to do with the novel teased on their official Twitter account, though, but more what happened the last time a major production tried to tackle it head-on. Despite boasting Ava DuVernay behind the camera, a hefty budget, and a stacked cast that numbered Storm Reid, Chris Pine, Oprah Winfrey, Mindy Kaling, Reese Witherspoon, and many more, A Wrinkle in Time became one of Disney’s biggest-ever bombs.

Bringing in a meager $133 million at the box office, the lavish fantasy ended up losing the Mouse House an estimated $130 million, so it’s easy to see why people are worried that one of the most popular shows of the entire streaming age potentially looking to Madeleine L’Engle’s beloved 1962 tome as an inspiration might not be the wisest move.

Of course, it’s not as if Stranger Things hasn’t based the majority of its entire existence on cribbing from other well-known stories, IPs, and franchises, but heading back to the 1960s would certainly be a new one for a series that’s always been so heavily steeped in all things 80s.

It would be better for Hawkins’ final stand to be its own thing, but on the plus side, there’s surely not much chance it’ll fare any worse at lifting liberally from A Wrinkle in Time than the feature-length version did.