What Will Be Netflix’s Flagship Franchise After Stranger Things?
Stranger Things is coming to an end, and thus marks the end of one of Netflix’s longest-running and most successful series. What will be there to pick up the baton? There are already a few shows that are rivalling Stranger Things in the popularity contest, but what else could come along? Here are our picks of what will be Netflix’s flagship series moving forward.
We’ve got six picks (or many more as Kasey cheated) as to what will take over and come along but one of the big things about Netflix is that they lay down so many chips on the table that often times, you never know what’s going to be a big hit. Sure, you can take a guess, but every now and again, a KPop Demon Hunters or a Squid Game comes along and blows all expectations out of the water.
One Piece
Picked by Jacob
Eichiro Oda’s beloved manga series has been in circulation for over 28 years, and arguably, it has never been more popular. With hundreds of millions of volumes sold, One Piece is the best-selling manga of all time.
At the time of writing, there are over 1100 manga chapters, totaling over 110 manga volumes. This means there is a significant amount of source material yet to be adapted, and, thanks to how long it takes to produce each season, One Piece technically has the longest lifespan of all its originals, as adapting the series in its entirety could take over 15 years.
However, the series’s longevity brings its own problems. If it takes 2 to 3 years between seasons, it won’t be long before the characters are aged out of their roles, and when you consider that in the manga/anime, the total time Luffy has spent as a pirate is under three years, so if all of the cast are 35+ or even 40+ when they’re meant to be playing young adults, it’s going to be a tough sell.
There are a number of different options available that Tomorrow Studios could pursue:
- Rather than adapting the entire story, Tomorrow Studios only commits to adapting all events before the time skip.
- In the One Piece manga/anime, there is a 2-year time skip; instead, they could write it as much longer —anywhere between 3 and 5 years — to account for the actors’ growing ages.
- Recast the actors for the post-time-skip story. A dramatic course of action, but considering it could take 6-8 seasons just to adapt all the story pre-time skip, on the current trajectory, the actors could all be in their 40s before it’s possible to adapt all of One Piece.
Even before the live-action series came along, One Piece was already one of the most popular fictional franchises in the world, and it continues to grow in popularity. As for Stranger Things, its impact on pop culture is still being felt to this day and will be for years to come. The first season of live-action One Piece adaptation was incredibly well-received and, in the eyes of many, is already regarded as one of the best manga-to-live-action adaptations. The performance of the second season will be paramount to how Netflix views the series going forward. If the series can grow its audience in season 2, there’s no reason why Netflix won’t commit to it for years to come.
The easiest sell for One Piece is that it’s for all ages. You can enjoy the series on your own, with friends, with family, or even in online communities. In that regard, One Piece has the greatest potential to reach the widest audience of all current Netflix titles.
Whatever The Duffers Are Working on Next at Netflix (Including Stranger Things)
Picked by Kasey
I’m cheating for my first picks by putting in a range of different titles, but essentially, I’m betting that the Duffer Brothers can keep the flame burning on Stranger Things for many years to come, and the other projects they’ve fostered at Netflix will do well, too.
Stranger Things, as the mothership series, is coming to an end, but that’s not to say that the IP goes away entirely. We already know about the big new animated show, Tales from 85, coming in 2026 across two seasons, and we’re also hearing good things about more Stranger Things spin-offs being prepped for release in 2027 and beyond. How long we have to wait for a live-action spin-off, though, is another thing entirely, and whether the prequel play, First Shadow, ever comes to our screens either through a recording, mini-series, or movie, is anyone’s guess.
Outside of Stranger Things, the Duffers have two projects prepped for 2026:
- Something Very Bad Is Going To Happen
- The Boroughs
Plus, they’re tied to adaptations of Death Note, The Talisman, and The Savage, Noble Death Of Babs Dionne, though whether they’ll go into production is unclear.
Of course, the only downside to The Duffer Brothers’ deal with Netflix in the coming years is that they’ve now signed an overall deal with Paramount, suggesting their attention will be split or fully diverted from Netflix.
Bridgerton
Picked by Jacob
Shonda Rhimes’ adaptation of Julia Quinn’s beloved novels has been nothing short of huge on Netflix. It’s one of the only Netflix Originals growing its audience year on year, and with the series renewed for seasons 5 and 6, the future is bright for the franchise. When you consider that there are 9 books in total (the ninth novel is more like an epilogue for the Bridgerton family), this means the series could go up to at least 8 or 9 seasons, and that’s before you consider any new spin-offs like we’ve previously seen with Queen Charlotte.
Shows like Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead, and Breaking Bad proved that a series does not need to be marketed for children to be a “flagship series.” So any argument over the mature scenes can go out the window. The series is incredibly well produced, features a fantastic cast, and audiences are always eager for more content. We would argue that once Stranger Things comes to an end, Bridgerton will be the de facto flagship series on Netflix until proven otherwise.
Scooby Doo Live-Action
Picked by Kasey
What Stranger Things gets so right is its nostalgic feeling. Whether you grew up in the ’80s or not, the series is dripping with what made that era great and we all now have a feeling of what it was like. One show that’s been in the zeitgeist for decades is Scooby-Doo! And earlier this year, Netflix confirmed it had greenlit a live-action version of the series, and everything we’re hearing suggests it could be following in its footsteps.
As I uncovered fairly recently, it appears that Scooby-Doo is trying to replicate a number of other key elements that made Stranger Things, particularly the early seasons, so special. It’s aiming for a young cast, and the casting notes specifically mention a Stranger Things vibe for the series. That’s not to mention the series is aiming to shoot exactly where ST did in Atlanta…
Beyond that, everything else is unknown and risky. The series was adapted into a live-action series before, and at the time, it wasn’t well received, though it’s since grown a cult following. Will Netflix have a Stranger Things level hit off the bat, or have to wait for generations to grow up to see the genius? We’ll soon find out.
Wednesday
Picked by Jacob
The first season of Wednesday took the world by storm. With fans falling head over heels for Jenna Ortega’s portrayal of Wednesday Addams and for Emma Myers as everyone’s favorite werewolf, Enid Sinclair, the first season to date has amassed over 2 billion viewing hours and 336 million views. With the addition of the second season, those numbers have skyrocketed, with the franchise now amassing over 500 million views. It’s not hard to see why Netflix is committed to more Wednesday with a third season on the way.
If we were to judge Wednesday solely by its views, it would be the natural successor to Stranger Things.
However, compared to the likes of One Piece and Bridgerton, the biggest question about the series’ future is its longevity. While both Bridgerton and One Piece have source material to keep their respective series going for years, the story of Wednesday is completely original, and as such, the series will eventually reach a point where it needs to reach a natural conclusion.
At some point, the actors may outgrow their roles, particularly since they are portraying high school-aged characters. Some might argue against this idea by referencing the young actors in “Stranger Things.” However, the key difference is that Jenna Ortega was already an adult when she first played Wednesday Addams, whereas we have watched the Stranger Things cast grow up season after season, making them seem significantly older than the characters they portray. Of course, with some easy writing, Wednesday could be shown attending college, or we might see her experience life after Nevermore Academy, possibly becoming a paranormal investigator.
The opportunities outside of Wednesday for the cast are also worth considering. Between the first and second seasons of Wednesday, Jenna Ortega and Emma Myers have taken on several projects of their own, and as the show’s popularity continues to grow, that demand will likely increase. We can also anticipate similar opportunities for series newcomer Agnes Demille, who won over audiences with her portrayal of Agnes Demille.
All that aside. One fact remains. Wednesday is one of the best shows on Netflix, and so long as that popularity continues, Netflix will do everything in its power to keep the franchise going. We certainly expect Netflix to renew for a fourth season and wouldn’t be at all surprised if the streaming service tries to negotiate a fifth season. We’re also expecting to see spin-offs somewhere down the line, most likely centered on characters like Uncle Fester and Agnes, who are the perfect fit for potential spin-offs.
Narnia
Picked by Kasey
It has been a long (long) road to get The Chronicles of Narnia moving at Netflix, yet we’re finally in a position to say, “it’s happening”. Now that a film is finally in production and confirmed for a late 2026 release, the project feels less like a gamble and more like a calculated swing at a new flagship fantasy universe.
What we know so far is that the Netflix adaptations are being shaped by Greta Gerwig, who has had a string of hits as of late and a strong background in adapting prized and beloved works. Plus, given the scale of the universe being adapted, I believe the combination suggests we’re in for something that could both disarm long-time fans and attract an entirely new generation, and be something Netflix can lean into with a myriad of different types of adaptations for years to come.
As for the future, Netflix has never spoken about Narnia as a one-and-done experiment. When Gerwig boarded the project, the early chatter pointed to at least two films, and fingers crossed that’s still the case. The books are varied enough in tone and scope that expansion becomes almost effortless once the foundation is laid. If the first movie lands, it’s easy to imagine Netflix branching it out and becoming the streamer’s biggest fantasy property.
That’s our picks – what are yours? What could and will be Netflix’s biggest hits following the end of Stranger Things?