Plainfield Floating 'Stranger Things' Display, TikTok Sensation Here To Stay

PLAINFIELD, IL — This Halloween season, one Plainfield house is taking all the headlines. And luckily, its "Stranger Things"-themed display isn't going anywhere.

After controversy stemming from an incident with a "disgruntled" neighbor, Aubrey and David Appel are gearing up to reopen their haunt, titled "Infested Oaks," this weekend.

When passersby or visitors come by the two-story house, at 1806 Whispering Oaks Court, one feature will stand out among all others: a figure, dressed as Max from the hit Netflix show "Stranger Things," seemingly floating in the air.

Because of this element, the Appel house has been the talk not only of the town but of the country. Their magical display not caught the eyes of both local news stations and Netflix, Good Morning America and Jimmy Fallon alike — and everyone seems to be asking the same question: How is Max levitating?

That's the question of the hour — or season. And it's one the couple isn't ready to answer.

"The secret is there, you just have to find it," Aubrey told Patch. "It's like an Easter egg." David even revealed to one interviewer that it doesn't involve drones, helium or balloons.

The Appel's home struck TikTok fame when the husband-and-wife duo began posting videos of their otherworldly display — and they've amassed more than 109,000 followers since starting the account, @horrorprops, about three weeks ago. One video that shows Max floating garnered more than 14.5 million views.

"A bunch of our friends were like, 'Oh, my God, you need to put this on TikTok,'" Aubrey said. "We're thinking, we'll get a few views, maybe a thousand likes or something. We got to bed and wake up in the morning, and it had, like, a million views ... and it just kept climbing and climbing."

The popularity has come with some difficulties, too. While most have embraced the display, some have had issues with it, prompting the couple to contemplate — and announce, at one point — taking it down.

"After a successful 2 days we are shutting down our HorrorProps home haunt down [due] to an incident with a neighbor swinging a baseball bat ... because someone was waiting to pull out of their driveway as a young family walked [past]," David explained in a Facebook post Oct. 2.

The couple's disappointment didn't last long, as the Appels announced three days later they would maintain the haunt as a result of "a flood of overwhelming support" from people around the world asking them to wait.

After they "truly were going to take it down," the couple talked to the Joliet Police Department — their house is in its jurisdiction — the City of Joliet and Plainfield trustees, who all "gave us their full support. They said that everything that we're doing is correct," Aubrey said.

"This is our favorite time of the year, so we want it to be everyone's favorite time of the year and not a bad experience," Aubrey said.

Going forward, it's possible officers will be stationed in the Whispering Oaks cul-de-sac to patrol the area during the haunt's hours, according to Aubrey. Joliet police did not respond to Patch's request for comment at the time of publication.

"Everyone has been super respectful," she said. We haven't had any issues with people being disruptive or anything like that, so we're like, 'We don't see this being an issue.' However, the neighbors, that's what they wanted, basically 24-hour surveillance of their home."

After visiting their display, Aubrey encourages visitors to check the Chicago Haunt Builders list and check out other houses in the area.

"Ours is cool, but others are cool, too," Aubrey said of her family's display. "Ours isn't the best house, and we're not trying to be the best house."

The "Infested Oaks" haunt will be open from 5-10 p.m. Friday and Saturday and from 4-9 p.m. Sunday through Nov. 6. Lights will be off Monday through Thursday. Should anything change, the Appels said they will keep the public updated via @horrorprops on TikTok and Facebook.