Netflix's Ted Sarandos saw something special with "Stranger Things," but never did he think that it would be such a massive hit. The show is now a giant pop culture hit with people naming their children and pets after the characters in the show. With the massive demand, Netflix will sell merchandise of the show to its countless fans.
Taking a chance on the lesser known Duffer brothers
According to Sarandos, he saw something special from one of the Duffer brothers' independent movie called "Hidden," Decider reported. The Duffer brothers used to have weak track record, making small movies and a few episodes of a little show called "Wayward Pines."
The brothers have to go through a lot before having their story funded. They have to pitch their story 19 times to various studios before landing on Netflix. But with the vision that Sarandos saw in the Duffer brothers' indie movie, he took a chance on the unknown filmmakers.
Sarandos said they knew that "Stranger Things" will gain the interest of the viewers, but they never even imagined that the show would have a massive number of social-media engagement. It has created a pop culture following that continues until present.
"Stranger Things" Merch
With countless fans clamoring for merchandises from the hit sci-fi show, Netflix is now planning to sell merchandise from the show. Sarandos said that there are a big number of fans clamouring for a T-shirt that has Eleven printed on it, CNET reported.
He expects big business from this strategy. Selling merchandise can bring big money for an entertainment company. Disney has been doing this and it has proven to be very lucrative for them.
Since Netflix is a global internet television provider, it has expanded its products from TV and Movies to late-night talks and live-sitcoms.
At present, Netflix has 30 original shows, which Sarandos expects to double in 2017. Meanwhile, "Stranger Things" season 2 is expected to air in 2017.
