If you loved Stranger Things and Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen, then chances are you’ll also be into Netflix‘s upcoming series The Boroughs. Produced by the Duffer Brothers and leaning into sci-fi and horror, the story follows a group of seniors living in a retirement community in the New Mexico desert who team up to fight an extraterrestrial threat that steals the most valuable thing they have left: time. Even just from the trailer, you can already get a solid idea of what kind of ride this is going to be — especially the tone, which clearly taps into the kind of ’80s movie vibe people still remember so fondly.

The truth is that The Boroughs didn’t come out of nowhere, because this kind of story has very obvious roots in those classic movies from the past. So if you’re already setting your expectations high for the show and want to start it in the right mindset, here are a few ’80s movies that are absolutely worth watching to get ready.

Yes, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial might feel like a slightly offbeat pick if you’re getting ready for The Boroughs, because it’s not really a mystery movie built around comedy or suburban paranoia. It’s entertaining and has a few cute, funny moments, but it’s not that kind of ride. Still, it’s worth watching before Netflix’s new series for one simple reason: the Duffer Brothers are basically direct heirs to Steven Spielberg. And E.T. is one of the best examples of how ’80s cinema could take a concept like “an alien stranded on Earth” and make it feel completely natural.

In this story, we follow a young boy who finds a lost alien, hides him at home, and tries to help him get back while the government slowly closes in. Overall, E.T. works as a great warm-up, not because of its tone, but because of its storytelling DNA. It sets that classic sci-fi template where . And if the whole point of the series is to play with the idea of something unbelievable showing up where no one expects it, this movie is basically an intro class, right?

4) Cocoon

Cocoon was explicitly cited by the show’s creators as a direct influence, which already makes it one of the most essential films to watch before The Boroughs. And honestly, it’s easy to see why. This is one of those rare sci-fi films that does something most stories still hesitate to do: it puts older characters front and center and doesn’t try to “balance” that by having a younger lead carry the plot. The movie fully commits to the idea that these people still have energy, desire, curiosity, and even impulsiveness. That approach lines up perfectly with what The Boroughs seems to be aiming for.

The film follows a group of retirees who discover that a swimming pool connected to an alien mission has a near-miraculous rejuvenating effect. And from there, it becomes a surprisingly fun blend of sci-fi and comedy, mixed with very human dilemmas. It’s not hard to understand why it works so well as a prerequisite for The Boroughs. The vibe is almost identical: a community that seems peaceful on the surface, characters who think they’ve already seen everything life has to offer, and then something impossible shows up and completely disrupts what everyone assumed was predictable.

3) Poltergeist

If The Boroughs really wants to flirt with horror (even the more mainstream, accessible kind), then Poltergeist is the first movie you should watch. Not because it’s the scariest entry on this list (even though some scenes still absolutely hold up), but because it’s basically the ultimate blueprint for suburban horror. It takes the safest possible setting — a family living in a normal neighborhood — and turns it into a nightmare. And it does it without relying on complicated rules or over-explaining anything. It just keeps dialing up the weirdness until it’s way too late.

The premise is classic: in Poltergeist, supernatural activity starts happening inside a house, until the youngest daughter suddenly disappears and the family realizes they’re dealing with something far bigger. And that’s exactly where the connection to The Boroughs kicks in; it taps into the terrifying idea that evil isn’t lurking somewhere far away, like a remote forest or some abandoned haunted building. It’s right there, in your home or in your neighborhood. That kind of setup naturally breeds paranoia, which is something the Duffer Brothers are great at playing with, just with more jokes and more adventure energy.

2) Ghostbusters

With Ghostbusters, it really feels like a formula was invented: take the supernatural and treat it like an everyday job that needs to get done — but that’s why the movie is still so fun. It doesn’t try to convince you that ghosts are mystical or deeply spiritual beings; it treats them like a problem someone has to deal with, basically a service people can pay for. And that approach is perfect if you’re getting into the mindset for The Boroughs, since the new Netflix series seems to be operating on that same wavelength: ordinary people trying to deal with something completely out of their depth, right?

A certified classic, Ghostbusters follows three broke scientists who decide to start a ghost-hunting business and end up facing a paranormal threat that spirals out of control way faster than expected. And the best part isn’t just the jokes, but the tone. The movie knows exactly when to be hilarious and when to let the situation feel big and dangerous. It makes the supernatural entertaining, but never harmless. And if The Boroughs manages to strike that same balance, it’s the kind of show that’ll be ridiculously easy to binge.

1) The ‘Burbs

Not enough people talk about The ‘Burbs, but if there’s one movie that feels like a perfect “spiritual predecessor” for The Boroughs, it’s this one. At its core, it’s basically about what happens when regular people get bored enough to turn their neighborhood into a crime investigation. And that’s funny and uncomfortably believable — everyone knows that kind of neighborhood where anything even slightly unusual becomes gossip, then a theory, and eventually a total freakout. The film understands that the biggest fuel for mystery stories isn’t always the supernatural; sometimes it’s just human beings with way too much free time.

The plot follows a guy who starts suspecting his new neighbors are either murderers or involved in some kind of ritual. From there, everything spirals into nonstop suspicion, break-ins, and amateur detective work that only makes the situation worse. And The ‘Burbs really nails that addictive feeling of “something is wrong here, but no one’s going to believe it.” Plus, it has exactly the kind of humor that fits what the Duffer Brothers seem to be going for: not goofy slapstick, but comedy built around people losing it, overthinking everything.

The Boroughs hits Netflix on May 21.

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