Stranger Things promo brings Starcourt Mall to Hawkins

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

The '80s-set Netflix series Stranger Things hits the nostalgia buttons hard with its latest promo, which functions as a commercial for the shopping mall that will be opening in Hawkins, Indiana "next summer". 

You'll see a familiar face working at the Scoops Ahoy Ice Cream Parlor, joined by a new addition to the cast, but for the most part this promo is just a look at the workings of a 1980s shopping mall.

I was a little kid during the glory days of the shopping mall era, so I am fascinated by those places. I love looking through pictures that were taken inside malls in the '80s, and sadly look through online images of the "dead malls" that are standing all over the country. So this Stranger Things promo is aimed directly at my heart.

The third season of Stranger Things is set during the summer of 1985. Series creators the Duffer Brothers have said the characters are still going to be dealing with the evil creature called the Mind Flayer: 

They've shut the door on the Mind Flayer, but not only is it still there in the Upside Down, it's very much aware of the kids, and particularly Eleven. It had not encountered her and her powers until that final episode (of season 2). Now, it knows that she's out there."

Returning stars Millie Bobby Brown, Finn Wolfhard, Caleb McLaughlin, Sadie Sink, Gaten Matarazzo, Noah Schnapp, Dacre Montgomery, Charlie Heaton, Natalia Dyer, Joe Keery, Priah Ferguson, Cara Buono, Winona Ryder, and David Harbour are being joined on the show by new cast members Francesca Reale, Maya Hawke, Jake Busey, and Cary Elwes.

(Keery and Hawke are the Scoops Ahoy employees.)

Stranger Things season 3 doesn't have a premiere date yet, but hopefully we won't have to wait until "next summer" for it like the residents of Hawkins have to wait for Starcourt Mall.

Ahoy! Something is coming… to Hawkins, Indiana! pic.twitter.com/BI4wFRVzvB

— Stranger Things (@Stranger_Things) July 16, 2018