When it comes to TV series, the release of the fifth instalment of Stranger Things will be one of this year’s biggest events. After a decade, fans will finally learn the ending of Eleven’s story and find out what’s really going on with the demonic realm of Upside Down.
Stranger Things season 4 ended two years ago, leaving viewers with a promise of a life-and-death clash between the sinister Vecna and Eleven, supported by her friends. We’ve rounded up all the rumours and news from the internet and analysed what we know of the final few episodes to predict what may happen in the show’s grand finale.
If you want to know what else is on Netflix, we’ve have round-ups of the best TV shows and the best movies on the platform.
When does Stranger Things season 5 release?
The series will return for the fifth season in 2025. However, the exact premiere date is unknown. The work on set ended in December 2024, and the show is currently in post-production. Season 5 will likely be split into two parts, as with season 4 and several other Netflix hits.
The show’s first season premiered on 15 July, and season 3 was released on 4 July, on American Independence Day. The first part of season 4 appeared in May and the second part in July. The only exception from the summer-release schedule was season 2, which hit Netflix on 27 October, just before Halloween.
Considering this, the first part of Stranger Things season 5 may arrive at the earliest in the summer of 2025. There is also a possibility that Netflix will again want to combine the season premiere with some important holiday. In that case, part 1 may drop on Halloween, Thanksgiving or Christmas, although Stranger Things Day, celebrated on 6 November – the day Will Buyers went missing – is also likely.
The recent leaks reported by What’s On Netflix also seem to imply a two-part release in October/November.
Note that these are only predictions, and Netflix needs to officially announce the premiere date for the fifth season of Stranger Things.
Season 3 took two years to develop, and season 4 took over three years – though admittedly a lot of that time was due to Covid-related delays.
The actor who plays Hopper, David Harbour, told GQ in July 2022 that they’d be shooting in 2023, making fans hopeful for a 2024 season 5 release. However, the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes put the start of filming on hold, pushing back the premiere date to 2025.
How many episodes will be in Stranger Things season 5?
On Twitter, the writers of the show shared a grid showing eight episodes in total. Last season had nine episodes, so this number does make sense.
On 6 November 2024, Netflix published a short teaser announcing the titles of all episodes. The date wasn’t random – the first episode of Stranger Things, titled The Vanishing of Will Byers, was set on 6 November 1983.
Here are the titles of Stranger Things season 5 episodes:
Episode 1: The Crawl
A possible reference to a D&D game type of scenario called a dungeon crawl, in which the player must move through a maze defeating monsters, solving puzzles and avoiding traps.
Episode 2: The Vanishing Of…
This refers to the first episode of Stranger Things season 1, titled The Vanishing of Will Byers. In season 5, another character from the series is likely to go missing.
Episode 3: The Turnbow Trap
In Stranger Things, Turnbow is the name of a development and real estate company. It appears on a ragged billboard depicting a smiling family, which you can spot in a behind-the-scenes clip from season 5.
Episode 4: Sorcerer
In a D&D universe, a sorcerer is a character class able to use arcane magic. The episode’s title could announce the appearance of a powerful, new ally in a fight against Vecna. Could it be the mysterious character played by Linda Hamilton?
Episode 5: Shock Jock
A shock jock is a common term referring to DJ or broadcaster who likes to surprise audiences with controversial behaviour. It may refer the radio station WSQK 94.5, which will appear in Stranger Things season 5.
Episode 6: Escape from Camazotz
In Mayan mythology, Camazotz is a bat who is the servant of the gods of the underworld. On the other hand, in the sci-fi novel A Wrinkle in Time, Camazotz is a utopian planet governed by a sinister entity. Considering the photo of this novel posted on social media by Ross Duffer, the latter is what the episode’s title refers to.
Episode 7: The Bridge
It may mean a connection between the ordinary world and the Upside Down.
Episode 8: The Rightside Up
It may mean the inverse of the Upside Down, yet another alternate world, or a return to the ordinary Hawkins.
Will Stranger Things season 5 be the last?
The Duffer Brothers have confirmed that season 5 will be the final instalment of Stranger Things. It will be a slightly shorter season than previous ones – though we don’t know if we will get those two-hour long episodes again.
On the ending, they said in an open letter:
Seven years ago, we planned out the complete story arc for Stranger Things. At the time, we predicted the story would last four to five seasons. It proved too large to tell in four, but – as you’ll soon see for yourselves – we are now hurtling toward our finale. Season 4 will be the penultimate season; season 5 will be the last.
If you’re sad about the end, then we have some good news – the Duffer Brothers aren’t done with this universe. There will be a spin-off based on the world of Stranger Things with a brand new cast and plot, and there will also be a stage show based on the sci-fi series.
Who is in the cast of Stranger Things season 5?
Netflix hasn’t officially confirmed the full cast for season 5, but we can take a guess at who will return.
We imagine that the following cast members will be back:
- Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven
- Finn Wolfhard as Mike
- Caleb McLaughlin as Lucas
- Gaten Matarazzo as Dustin
- Noah Schnapp as Will
- Sadie Sink as Max
- Joe Keery as Steve
- Natalia Dyer as Nancy
- Charlie Heaton as Jonathan
- Maya Hawke as Robin
- Priah Ferguson as Erica
- David Harbour as Hopper
- Winona Ryder as Joyce
- Brett Gelman as Murray
Netflix
We will almost definitely see the return of big bad Vecna, portrayed by Jamie Campbell Bower, as well as other antagonists like Lt. Colonel Jack Sullivan played by Sherman Augustus.
There will also be a new face – Terminator star Linda Hamilton will be joining the cast in a so-far unnamed role.
Further additions to the cast include:
- Nell Fisher
- Jake Connelly
- Alex Breaux
What will happen in Stranger Things season 5?
Spoilers for Stranger Things season 4 below
Netflix has yet to release any plot description for the fifth season. However, in February 2025, a significant data leak occurred related to the new episodes of the series. According to What’s on Netflix, over 400 assets were downloaded from the internal Netflix website, including “images from the new season, character guides, artwork, logos, and artwork from various artists working with Netflix on the final season.” Details of season 5 potential premiere date have also leaked.
The files were uploaded to various X accounts, but Netflix quickly began reporting the leaked content. Out of respect for the creators and viewers, we won’t use the revealed materials and try to predict by ourselves what may happen in Stranger Things season 5.
The ending of Stranger Things season 4 was bleaker than most other season finales as ultimately, the Hawkins crew lost. Vecna opened the gates to the Upside Down, and now Hawkins is leaking parts of this strange world into the real one.
Vecna himself is missing after being injured by Eleven, Nancy, Steve and Robin – but we imagine that he is still seeking out Eleven, either for revenge or for a full-on team-up.
The Hawkins group will likely try to find ways to close the gates and return Vecna and his monsters back to the Upside Down once and for all.
The Duffer Brothers have confirmed to TVLine that there will be some sort of time jump. This is most likely due to the fact that most of the cast just can’t pass for young teenagers anymore – but it may be that the Upside Down completely engulfs Hawkins over the years, and the team have to find a way to revert it back to how it once was.
But how? We still don’t know the origins of One’s/Vecna’s/Henry’s powers. Finding this out could be the key to taking him down, and ending his control of the Mind Flayer and other creatures from the Upside Down.
Eleven clearly stands the best chance against him, but she still has some more training to do before she can take him down.
We also know that Lt. Colonel Jack Sullivan is still after Eleven, as he considers her to be a real supernatural threat. It wouldn’t be surprising to see the team laying low and hiding from the government. This is even more likely considering everyone’s connection to Eddie and the Hellfire Club – with many residents of the town believing that they are a devil-worshipping cult.
In an interview with The Wrap, the Duffer Brothers pitched the final season to some Netflix executives, and said: “They really responded well to it. I mean, it was hard. It’s the end of the story. I saw executives crying who I’ve never seen cry before and it was wild.”
Does that mean that we will get some major character deaths? Last season, the only two major losses we had were of Eddie Munson and Dr. Martin Brenner/Papa. Max is severely injured and in a coma, but has survived. Her experience may also mean that she still has a psychic link with Vecna, which could prove useful in the final battle.
Either way, we can’t see everyone in the gang making it out alive. We have a strong suspicion that Eleven may have to sacrifice herself, as ultimately she was the one that opened the gate to the world all the way back in season one, so she may have to be the one who closes it.
In addition, we expect Will to play a major part in season 5, at least if Collider‘s article is anything to go by. The finale of last season showed that he still has a connection to Vecna, and that in the finale he will come into his own. Will also showed strong hints that he is in love with Mike – another plot that we believe that will be explored in season 5.
There is also the ongoing love triangle between Jonathan, Nancy and Steve – another story that may indicate that at least one of these characters won’t make it out of the final season alive and well.
Finally, the Russians may be still be hunting down Hopper and Joyce after they escaped from prison. Will they make their way to America to enact their revenge? All will be revealed in season 5.
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