"That was intentional": Stranger Things creator Matt Duffer reveals that one of his daughter's first words was "demogorgon"

Stranger Things co-creator, Matt Duffer, recently joked that one of his daughter's first words was "demogorgon". Demogorgon is a character in the popular Netflix series.

Matt Duffer and his brother, Ross, created Stranger Things, which was first released on July 15, 2016, in the US. It has gained immense popularity since then and is gearing towards its finale. The first part of the final season, which is divided into three parts, was released on November 26, 2025.

Matt and Ross appeared on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, released on Wednesday, December 17. They spoke about the series and its characters, including Demogorgon. Jimmy Fallon asked Matt Duffer about her daughter's first word being "demogorgon" to which he replied:

"I think it was yeah, demogorgon. It was like, ‘Mommy, daddy, demogorgan’. It was intentional, I taught her that. We have a Stranger Things pinball machine in the house."

Fallon excitedly asked about the pinball machine, saying:

"There’s a Stranger Things pinball?"

Matt added:

"There is. It’s incredible for anyone who collects pinball machines, the 20 of you. You gotta shoot the ball in the demo’s mouth, whatever. So, she’s [his daughter] really into monsters now, which is great. She’s 4, so..."

Matt Duffer has two kids with his Sarah Hindsgaul, as per Elle Decor.

Also Read: "Eleven is in water!": Duffer Brothers tease the ending of Stranger Things using Funko pop figures: Details explored

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Matt Duffer and Ross Duffer explain how they created Demogorgon for Stranger Things

SAG Nom Com Screening & Q&A - (Image Source: Getty)

The brothers also explained how the character of Demogorgon developed from the first season to later stages. They shared that since they didn't initially have a big budget, they stuck to a simple design, which included a fitting suit for Mark Steger.

Ross Duffer said on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon:

“We knew Season 1 we needed it to be a guy in a suit. We didn’t have a lot of money, so we put a guy named Mark in a suit. So it had to fit Mark. We got the skinniest guy we could find.”

Sharing their work with a concept designer, Ross added:

“We worked with a concept designer and the main thing that we told them — a lot of designs came through — but the main thing we said is we want to be able to have a design that if you’re a young kid and you’ve seen the show, you can just draw it very easily. So that’s how the petals came out.”

Matt Duffer then said:

“It’s pretty simple to draw."

Ross responded:

“Yeah, it’s basically a flower and then arms and a leg.”

Stranger Things was initially set to be a limited series, as per The Hollywood Reporter. However, it was extended due to its immense popularity.

Meanwhile, Jimmy Fallon also asked the brothers about fan theories regarding the series finale, to which Ross responded:

“No.I’ve seen a lot of theories; none of them have got the ending right. None of them.”

The second volume of Season 5 of the show, comprising three episodes, will be released on Christmas (December 25). The season finale will be released on New Year's Eve (December 31).

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Also Read: Duffer brothers reveal an exclusive look from Stranger Things 5 episode 5 at The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

Edited by Aditya Singh