Executive producers behind Stranger Things are heading in a very different direction with their next project, and the new trailer for The Boroughs teases something far more unsettling than suburban retirement.

Created by showrunners Jeffrey Addiss and Will Matthews (The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance), the eight-episode sci-fi mystery series arrives May 21 on Netflix.

Set in the sun-bleached desert of New Mexico, The Boroughs centers on a seemingly idyllic retirement community that promises its residents a peaceful, carefree life. But for newcomer Sam Cooper, the picture-perfect setting quickly feels more like a trap than paradise.

Everything unravels after a disturbing nighttime encounter suggests something monstrous is lurking in the neighborhood’s pristine cul-de-sacs. When Sam tries to sound the alarm, he’s dismissed as confused and unreliable—just another overlooked retiree.

Forced to take matters into his own hands, Sam forms an unlikely alliance with a group of fellow residents: a sharp former journalist, a spiritual seeker, a disillusioned music manager, and a brilliant doctor running out of time. Together, they begin uncovering a chilling truth hidden beneath the community’s polished surface.

The series boasts an ensemble cast including Alfred Molina, Geena Davis, Alfre Woodard, Denis O’Hare, Clarke Peters, Bill Pullman, Jena Malone, and more.

Additional cast members include Ed Begley Jr., Dee Wallace, Eric Edelstein, Rafael Casal, Mousa Hussein Kraish, Beth Bailey, Karan Soni, and Jane Kaczmarek.

Directing duties are split across multiple episodes, with Ben Taylor helming the first two, followed by Augustine Frizzell and Kyle Patrick Alvarez (The Stanford Prison Experiment) for the remainder.

Behind the scenes, The Duffer Brothers executive produce through Upside Down Pictures alongside Hilary Leavitt, Addiss, Matthews, and Taylor.

Addiss describes the series as being built around a central existential question: what do you do with the time you have left? The show explores that idea through characters who may be closer to the end of their lives—but who also find themselves confronting the possibility that their remaining time may not be as predictable as they think.

Matthews expands on that theme, noting that the question of time and meaning applies across every age group, even if the stakes feel sharper for the residents of The Boroughs.

The result is a sci-fi mystery where aging, mortality, and something deeply unnatural collide—and the trailer suggests this quiet community is hiding far more than it lets on.

The Boroughs premieres May 21 on Netflix.