Glimmers of North Carolina in the latest "Stranger Things" season
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Durham natives Ross Duffer and Matt Duffer attend the "Stranger Things 5" UK Special Screening at Odeon Luxe Leicester Square on Nov. 13, 2025 in London. Photo: Kate Green/Getty Images
Brothers Ross and Matt Duffer, creators of the hit Netflix sci-fi series "Stranger Things," are Durham natives. If you're a local fan, you may notice subtle North Carolina references throughout the show.
Why it matters: The Durham area serves as an inspiration for various details throughout Stranger Things, one of the most successful TV shows of the past decade — from street and neighborhood names to local landmarks.
Driving the news: Volume 1, which includes the first four episodes of season five of "Stranger Things," was released on Nov. 26.
Between the lines: While Hawkins — the show's fictional small town — is in Indiana, much of the filming has happened across the South, including in Georgia at spots like Gwinnett Place Mall and even the real-life Byers family home, now rentable on Airbnb.
- For Triangle natives, "Stranger Things" may feel surprisingly close to home thanks to various local references by the Duffer Brothers, who are graduates of Charles E. Jordan High School.
Warning: Season five spoilers ahead.
WSQK aka "The Squawk" building
Episode one opens inside the fictional WSQK building, where Robin Buckley and Steve Harrington work this season. The building's design has a striking resemblance to WPTF's old transmitter building in Cary, with a mid-century broadcast aesthetic that locals may easily recognize.
Ms. Harris
Some sharp-eyed grads of Jordan High School may recognize Ms. Harris — she's played by Hope Hynes Love, the Duffer Brothers' actual high school drama teacher. She appears early in the season when she notices her student, Holly Wheeler, speaking to an imaginary friend, and she later tries to protect her class from Demogorgons during episode four.
- Hynes currently works at East Chapel Hill High School.
What they're saying: "High school was rough for me and my brother. But Hope saw something in us we didn't see in ourselves — and she helped give us the confidence to not only survive those four years, but to move to LA and chase our dreams. Shoutout to all the teachers out there making a difference," Ross wrote on Instagram.
Road references
Zoom in: Episode one drops a few unmistakable geographical nods to Durham. When Nancy maps out their route to track Jim Hopper through the Upside Down, she mentions cutting down Main Street to Cornwallis — a real Durham road near where the Duffer Brothers once lived.
- In episode four, Dustin name-checks Irwin Road while realizing the wall they've hit in the Upside Down encircles Hawkins Lab. It's a near match to Durham's Erwin Road — the same road where the brothers attended Duke School for Children.
Other seasons: The News & Observer rounded up several other notable Durham-area references in other "Stranger Things" seasons, including mentions of the Eno River, Jordan Lake and the Lochn'ora neighborhood, among other spots.
What's next: Volume 2 — episodes five through seven — hits Netflix on Christmas Day at 8pm. The series finale will air Dec. 31 at 8pm, with limited screenings in select theaters.
Did we miss any nods in season five? Email [email protected] for a possible mention.