As a fan of Stranger Things (like most people out there), you have likely wondered what exactly the Upside Down is. Creators Matt and Ross Duffer reveal more information in a recent conversation with Netflix about this dark and spooky world, which consists of floating spores in the newest season. And the inspiration of it is rather odd.The Duffers have revealed that the Upside Down itself was partially inspired by The Bridge on the River Kwai, a well-known film about WWII and soldiers, and a bridge they need to destroy in order to save lives. They borrowed that concept, an architectural element between two sides that could not be permitted to exist, and made it supernatural. In Stranger Things, that bridge is a connection between two worlds.Such a combination of typical action drama and horror is what contributes to the deeper meaning of the show. Although the Upside Down is an unfamiliar and frightening world, it is constructed on a rather simple storytelling concept, which contributes to the chaos being authentic and potent.What we thought the Upside Down is and what it actually represents View this post on Instagram Instagram PostMany fans have long thought that the Upside Down was a darker version of Hawkins, the same world, only creepier. However, Tudum demonstrates how Stranger Things Season 5 Volume 2 turns that concept the other way around. The Upside Down is not a world that should actually be explored in the same way as a normal world. Rather, it is a bridge, or a tunnel, between the real world and a worse one, namely the Abyss.This new interpretation of it resembles the emotional tension seen in the Oscar-winning 1957 film, The Bridge on the River Kwai. In both instances, there is something significant that binds together two extreme sides and the cost of destroying the connection between the two is extremely high. This movie inspired the Duffer Brothers to build the Upside Down functioning in Stranger Things, not just in appearance, but also the way it propels the action and emotional interest as well.Matt Duffer told Netflix,“We love the film Bridge on the River Kwai. The idea in that film is they need to blow up this bridge. It’s a major military goal. So we thought the idea of a supernatural version of that, where … our characters ultimately need to blow up this ‘bridge’ that connects Hawkins to an evil dimension was a really cool goal and something we hadn’t seen before. That was something we’d been working toward for a couple years.”Why the Duffer Brothers leaned into movie DNA View this post on Instagram Instagram PostStranger Things is such an addictive series because it so openly displays its influences without feeling like a copy at all. The Duffer Brothers have said that The Bridge on the River Kwai is a film they truly adore, and they simply took its premise, to have a bridge that cannot be ignored and needs to be destroyed, to a science fiction context. Ross Duffer stated in a conversation with Netflix's Tudum,“We’ve slowly been peeling back the layers over the seasons, but in our final season, we wanted to explain finally what the Upside Down was.”That is, instead of soldiers and a railroad bridge, we have kids, psychic powers, and awful vines that are connecting two worlds. But fundamentally, the concept is the same: There is a risky connection between two forces, and something needs to be done about that. This serves the Upside Down in Stranger Things far more than being an aesthetically pleasing setting. It becomes a key part of the story, adding real meaning and higher stakes to Stranger Things Season 5’s finale.For more such insights on Stranger Things, keep following SoapCentral.