Almost by definition, ’cease and desist’ letters from multinational corporations rarely reveal a sense of humour. So kudos to media giant Netflix for its passive aggressive note to the owners of a pop-up bar in Chicago.

The bar is a tribute to the Netflix show Stranger Things, a horror drama set in the 1980s about a group of children searching for their vanished friend.

The correspondence, widely shared across social media, is a series of in-jokes and show references mixed with a polite request for the owners to ask permission before opening a show-themed bar.

‘Look, I don’t want you to think I’m a total wastoid, and I love how much you guys love the show,’ says the Netflix lawyer. ‘But unless I’m living in the Upside Down [the alternative dimension thought to be the location of the missing friend], I don’t think we did a deal for this pop-up.

‘You’re obviously creative types, so I’m sure you can appreciate that it’s important to us to have a say in how our fans encounter the worlds we build.’

The letter states it won’t go ‘full Dr. Brenner on you’ (a reference to the shady laboratory chief) but does warn that the ‘demogorgon [the kids’ nickname for the show’s monster] is not always as forgiving’, before adding: ‘please don’t make us call your mom’.

The letter was reportedly amicably received by the bar owners and the resulting coverage garnered publicity for the show, which coincidentally has its second series premier next month.

 

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