Stranger Things Season 2 is poised to be a very big deal when it returns to Netflix on October 27th. And to accommodate a second season this big, the town of Hawkins, Indiana will have to play host to an ever bigger villain than that of the demogorgon or the Hawkins National Laboratory. It’s a villain so big that it’s been teased in the TV show’s marketing material as a looming specter of doom in the clouds above town. Now, showrunners Matt and Ross Duffer are offering some details on it.

In a chat with EW, the Duffer Bros. teased the monster’s massive size, the mystery it brings to Hawkins, and the inspiration for its design. While the demogorgon from Season 1 transitioned from the Dungeons & Dragons game board, to the Upside-Down, to the above-world of Hawkins throughout the season, this beastie is going to have more of a physical presence even if its origins are shrouded in secrecy. It’s an intriguing addition and we can’t wait to see how it plays out.

Here’s Matt Duffer’s explanation:

“Our big reference for [the demogorgon] season 1 was mostly Jaws. It’s a shark and, the other dimension is the underwater. So there has to be something more sentient and that’s that big thing in the sky. “There’s an H.P. Lovecraft sort of approach, this inter-dimensional being that is sort of beyond human comprehension. We purposely don’t want to go too much into what it is or what it wants.”

Brother Ross weighs in as well:

“I think the difference is you don’t really see how it’s all tied together until later. But it’s all connected to this singular threat which is tied into this shape that Will sees in the sky. Will is the way through which we’re able to understand what’s going on.”

Speaking of Will, who returns for Season 2, Noah Schnapp had something to say about his character:

“It’s not like others have gone through this. No one has ever gone through this before. So [Will’s] confused, he’s scared, and he’s trying to cope with everything. You’ll learn in the second season how the Upside Down is affecting him and how it’s kind of changing him.”

Also part of their own EW conversation were stars David Harbour, Winona Ryder, and newcomer Sean Astin. Get a glimpse at their chemistry in the video interview below:

And for more on Stranger Things, be sure to check out our recent write-ups at the links below: