Stranger Things Season 4 “has a per-episode cost of $30 million, according to sources close to the show,” according to a Wall Street Journal report published today. The piece digs into Netflix’s history of extravagant spending on original content, none of which have proven to be as successful — or as costly — as Stranger Things.
Netflix is reporting a reduction in members, which might be related to their recent price hike (the basic plan went from $8.99 to $9.99, and the standard plan went from $13.99 to $15.49) that went into effect on April 17. Netflix may be compelled to make some adjustments in the near future to stay on top, with Disney+ breathing down their necks (and supported by a large budget of its own).
The platform is currently considering everything from increasing the value of titles favoured by the least frequent users who are most likely to cancel, to cutting funds for new titles, altering up their licensing strategy, and reevaluating its key production contracts.
Stranger Things will culminate with a fifth and final season, which should come as no surprise. With each successive season, the renowned fantasy-horror series has discovered fascinating and terrifying new ways to outdo itself, yet in doing so, the expense of production has skyrocketed in order to effectively up the ante. With a $30 million per episode price tag for the fourth season, Netflix (whose stock has just plummeted) would be hard pressed to keep even its crown jewel funded for much longer.
Season 4 Part 1 of Stranger Things will air on Netflix on May 27.