Stranger Things may have signed off with the blockbuster finale earlier this month, but that doesn’t mean you have to say goodbye to Netflix’s No. 1 all-time original series. To coincide with the epic swan-song season, the brickmasters at Lego went equally epic, releasing the 2,593-piece Stranger Things Creel House, recreating in painstaking detail the haunted home base for the show’s big bad, Henry Creel, aka One, aka Vecna.
The set includes 13 minifigs and two vehiclesThe Lego Group
The build — which can customized to look like the sparkling dream home of the Creels circa 1959 (and later recreated in Vecna’s Mind Lair in Season 5) or as the boarded up creepshack the Party infiltrates in Season 4 — features an array of Easter eggs spanning all five seasons (including Max’s cassette mixtapes, Lucas’ boombox, Henry’s mind flayer sketch, that ominous grandfather clock, and Will’s bike). It also includes the WSQK-Radio van and Steve’s 1983 BMW 733i (which can be Dustin-modified with the van’s giant dish), along with a dream lineup of minifigures: Eleven, Will (with optional sorcerer’s eyes), Mike, Lucas, Dustin, Max, Holly, Steve, Nancy, Robin, Jonathan, Mr. Whatsit, and Vecna.
A hidden chamber transforms Mr. Whatsit into VecnaThe Lego Group
A secret portal lets Mr. Whatsit spin into Vecna (spoiler alert!). And an ingenious mechanism allows the house to split open, revealing pathways to Vecna’s interdimensional realm — Lego bills Chez Creel as its first-ever “transforming house set.”
Series creators Matt and Ross Duffer were suitably blown away, saying in a statement that “seeing Stranger Things rebuilt in bricks is honestly surreal.”
The Duffer Brothers with the Lego Creel HouseThe Lego Group
To find out how the landmark set came together, Gold Derby grilled the architect of the evil edifice, Michael Psiaki, Brickmaster General senior master model designer at the Lego Group. Psiaki took us behind the bricks, sharing details of how it all came together, the spooky location where he first showed off a prototype to the Duffers, and what plans he and his team have for future Stranger Things sets.
Gold Derby: The original Stranger Things Lego set, the Byers House/Upside Down, was instantly iconic — how did you go about topping that?
Michael Psiaki: That was definitely a challenge, as our first Lego Stranger Things set, the Upside Down, remains iconic! That set, released in 2019, had such a strong and unique build and display concept with the upside-down build.
Lego’s Upside Down set featured the Byers house in multiple dimensionsThe Lego Group
As a result, we knew we needed a concept equally bold for the Creel House; the transformation feature became our answer to that. The Creel House set is not just a static model — it’s an experience. You start by building what feels like a classic Lego house; by the end, you realize you’ve been assembling a hidden mechanism the whole time! It’s that surprise and depth that I think makes this set stand out.
How long has the Creel House set been in the works?
This set has been in development for quite a while! The very first concept sketches for the Stranger Things Creel House set were developed in the summer of 2024, with further development taking almost an entire year from there. A large portion of that development time was spent figuring out how to make the house transformation feature of the set possible — it was such an ambitious idea that we had to go through multiple iterations of set mock-ups in design before landing on something that worked reliably and felt intuitive for builders.
What kind of assets from the series did you use as references for the model? How closely did you work with Netflix and the Duffer Brothers?
We had access to a lot of great series reference material from the Netflix team — on top of hundreds of production stills and set blueprints, we even got the chance to visit the actual Creel House where the series was filmed, where we met with the Duffer Brothers and got to show them our preliminary version of the Lego model inside Henry Creel’s bedroom!
The real Creel House and the Lego versionThe Lego Group
That set visit was incredible and really helped us capture quite a bit of authentic detail that is reflected in the set. We worked closely with Netflix throughout the design and development process to make sure everything within the set felt authentic to the series. The visual references that Netflix provided served as inspiration for everything from the radio antenna on top of the WSQK van to the wallpaper patterns inside the Creel House entryway.
What are your favorite vignettes or Easter eggs for the super fans?
There are so many intentional details sprinkled throughout this set that Stranger Things fans are sure to enjoy! I don’t want to spoil all of the surprises that are sure to come with building the set, but personally, I love Henry Creel’s bedroom within this set — I think it offers retro vibes, as well as some subtle nods to key moments in the show’s fifth and final season. Further, there are smaller surprises that fans will recognize if they’ve rewatched the earlier seasons — let’s just say the clock isn’t the only iconic element hiding in there!
The grandfather clock is one of several Easter eggs sprinkled through the setThe Lego Group
Do you consider yourself a fan of the series?
Absolutely. I’ve been a fan of Stranger Things since the first season came out in 2016! The show’s mix of nostalgia, mystery, and supernatural elements is so compelling to me. Working on this set gave me an excuse to rewatch the show with a close eye and revisit all of the world-building details that make it so rich.
If you could take on another iconic scene or location in Stranger Things, what would it be?
I can’t say much, but there’s a whole world of possibilities to explore, and it’s always exciting to imagine where the journey might take us next.