Stranger Things meets Cocoon in first look at Netflix's The Boroughs

Alfred Molina, Geena Davis, Alfre Woodard, Clarke Peters, Denis O’Hare, and Bill Pullman star in the latest series executive produced by the Duffer Brothers.

By Drew Gillis  |  February 25, 2026 | 9:15am
All images courtesy of Netflix
TV News The Boroughs
Stranger Things meets Cocoon in first look at Netflix's The Boroughs

The Duffer Brothers were sitting around wondering when someone was going to make a modern riff on Ron Howard’s 1985 film Cocoon, so they decided to make it happen themselves. That’s more or less what they’ve said, at least, to accompany the first look at The Boroughs, a new series from Netflix that follows the over 50 set as they encounter and battle aliens in their retirement community. The show is created by Jeffrey Addiss and Will Matthews and executive produced by the Duffers. “They were adamant that — unlike so many stories about older characters — this wouldn’t treat aging as a punchline,” the Duffers say of the pitch. “Instead, it would treat its characters as real people facing real challenges … along with a few supernatural ones. It was exactly the show we’d been dreaming of.”

They certainly found a good group of actors for the project. Alfred Molina, Geena Davis, Alfre Woodard, Clarke Peters, Denis O’Hare, and Bill Pullman all star. Molina’s Sam Cooper is described as the “heart” of the series. “He recently lost his wife, and he’s trying to figure out what to do with the time he has left, which is a question we all face, no matter our age. It’s just the stakes get higher the more years you have under your belt,” say the creators. “[A] show about a group of retirees who fight monsters really plays to both our strengths. The result is an adventure about a group of unlikely heroes that we can’t wait for everyone to fall in love with.” 

The entire first season of The Boroughs premieres on Netflix on May 21. Check out the first-look images below.

 
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