The crazy government conspiracy theory that inspired 'Stranger Things'
It turns out that Netflix's sci-fi hit "Stranger Things" resembles very closely an alleged real-life government experiment known as "The Montauk Project."
As Thrillist reports, The Montauk Project is claimed to have been a series of government experiments that were done at Camp Hero or Montauk Air Force Station in Montauk, Long Island. Stories of the experiments have circulated since the 1980s, saying they focused on psychological-warfare techniques and things like time travel, teleportation, and mind control. (Though the stories, many of which come from supposed repressed memories, are not at all confirmed and should be taken with a grain of salt.)
As for "Stranger Things"? Well, the show was originally titled "Montauk" when it was picked up by Netflix, and the synopsis (reported by Slash Film) makes it pretty clear the creators were inspired by those repressed memories:
Thrillist highlights a man named Preston Nichols, who claims to have memories of being involved in a specific experiment known as the "Montauk Chair," which amplifies psychic powers.
See if this description of an experiment from Nichols' book "The Montauk Project: Experiments in Time" sounds familiar:
Kind of sounds like the experiment being done on Eleven before she opens the Upside Down portal on "Stranger Things."
And in this excerpt from Nichols' book he writes about how Duncan summoned a monster while on the chair:
We've had fun naming all the movies that "Stranger Things" is paying homage to, but it's equally fascinating to see how it's playing with decades-old government conspiracy theories.
And that's not quite all. "Stranger Things" also echoes another real project known as Project MK-ULTRA, the CIA's covert, illegal program doing scientific research on human subjects. During the Cold War, the CIA subjected people to experiments with drugs including LSD, and some argue the program was for the purposes of mind control, as Time reports.
However, the creators of "Stranger Things," Matt and Ross Duffer, have been coy about the connection to the Montauk Project (or any other potential government experiment). They've only said that ditching the "Montauk" title was "very painful."