Stranger Things season 5 what we know so far TechRadar

Stranger Things season 5 what we know so far TechRadar

Stranger Things season 5 what we know so far TechRadar Skip to main content TechRadar is supported by its audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here's why you can trust us. Stranger Things season 5 what we know so far By Tom Power last updated 14 September 2022 Stranger Things season 5 is on the way Stranger Things season 5 will be the final entry in the mainline TV series. (Image credit: Netflix) Jump to: Release date Cast Story Trailer Series' future Audio player loading… Stranger Things season 5: key info- Fifth season will be the mainline show's final entry - No release date yet - Scripts being penned as of August 2022 - Filming may begin in 2023 - Core cast likely to return - Major characters could die - Fifth season unlikely to feature new characters - Will answer lingering questions about the Upside Down - Spin-off and stage play projects in the works Stranger Things season 5 feels like a distant dream right now. The fifth and final entry in the wildly popular Netflix show is coming at some point, but we don't know when it'll arrive on our screens. It's not likely to be released for a couple of years, though. Right now, Stranger Things 5 is only in its pre-production phase, with the hit Netflix series' chief creative team thrashing out its story and how to narratively structure its final season. Still, at least they can celebrate a job well done on Stranger Things season 4, which became the most-watched English language Netflix show of all-time and recently landed five Emmy awards (opens in new tab) for its troubles. Those tidbits aren't the only news to emerge about Stranger Things' fifth season recently, either. We've also learned whether fan favorite character Eddie could return for the final installment, as well as some key storylines that it might follow. Below, you'll also find even more information on Stranger Things season 5, including its possible launch date, returning cast members, and the franchise's future. Full spoilers follow for Stranger Things season 4. Potential spoilers for its fifth season follow, too, but we'll warn you when we're about to discuss those. Stranger Things season 5 release date When will Stranger Things season 5 launch on Netflix? (Image credit: Netflix) Stranger Things season 5 doesn't have a release date. Pre-production has only just started, with the Stranger Things writers' Twitter account confirming that script work was underway in early August: Day 1 pic.twitter.com/9m44RkJnc3August 2, 2022See more Since then, the show's creative team have moved onto working out where key storylines will fit in season 5's overarching narrative, with the "grid stage" of plot development beginning in late August: Grid stage pic.twitter.com/b8EmBsafUFAugust 25, 2022See more Speaking to GQ magazine (opens in new tab), David Harbour – who plays Jim Hopper – suggested that filming will begin "next year". As long as there are no issues throughout its production, then, Stranger Things 5 could land sometime in 2024. However, the Duffer brothers – Stranger Things' creators – were more coy about when we may see the show's fifth season. "It depends who you ask," Matt Duffer told Collider (opens in new tab). "That's what we're still figuring out. If you ask our AD [assisant director] and our line producer, they want more time for production. Our post-production supervisor wants more time for post-production. So it's going to be a big discussion. How long does everybody get? "Here's the thing, the more you shorten production, the more you shorten post-production, the more things get compromised. Ross and I will always favor quality, I think. At the end of the day, I think it's better that it's good than that it comes out quickly." Additionally, Sadie Sink, who plays Max Mayfield, told Deadline (opens in new tab): "It takes a while to get everything ready to go for a new season, because once we start filming, we do not stop. This last season took two years in total, so who knows how long season five will take. The Duffers definitely know the fans will be eagerly awaiting a fifth season, but I don't think they're gonna rush it. They wanna make the best final season that they could possibly make." As for the length of season 5's episodes, the Duffers plan to make them shorter than season 4's entries. Depending on how the Duffers want to wrap up the mainline show's story, though, the length of Stranger Things 5's episodes will be dictated by how long the scripts are. Stranger Things season 5 cast Eleven will definitely be back for Stranger Things 5. (Image credit: Netflix) There's no official confirmation on who's returning but, based on how season 4 ended, here's who we expect to see:Millie Bobby Brown as ElevenWinona Ryder as Joyce ByersDavid Harbour as Jim HopperFinn Wolfhard as Mike WheelerGaten Matarazzo as Dustin HendersonCaleb McLaughlin as Lucas SinclairNoah Schnapp as Will ByersSadie Sink as Max MayfieldJoe Keery as Steve HarringtonNatalie Dyer as Nancy WheelerCharlie Heaton as Jonathan ByersMaya Hawke as Robin BuckleyBrett Gelman as Murray BaumanPriah Ferguson as Erica SinclairEduardo Franco as Argyle Of the above, Sadie Sink's Max is the character most likely to perish early on in season 5. Following her near-fatal encounter with Vecna in the season 4 finale, Max is in a medically-induced coma in Hawkins Hospital. Additionally, Eleven, who went looking for Max in the Void, couldn't find her. So nobody knows if Max will wake up. Speaking after the season 4 finale, Sink confirmed she's as much in the dark as fans are about Max's fate. We still expect Max to appear in the final season – in what capacity, though, it remains to be seen. It's possible that other supporting characters may feature in Stranger Things season 5. Karen Wheeler (Cara Buono), Ted Wheeler (Joe Chrest), Lieutenant Colonel Jack Sullivan (Sherman Augustus), Vickie (Amybeth McNulty), and Suzie (Gabriella Pizzolo) could all appear, though it's unclear how involved they'll be. Dmitri Antonov (Tom Wlaschiha) and Yuri Ismaylov (Nikola Duricko) might be back, too, if season 5 is set in the US and Russia. Meanwhile, other prominent characters' fates were left unclear by season 4's final episode. Doctor Sam Owens (Paul Reiser) was left handcuffed to a pipe in the subterranean Nina Project, while Vecna (Jamie Campbell-Bower) had disappeared after he was severely injured by Nancy, Steve, and Robin. We'd expect both to return – they're too important not to – but we're still waiting for Netflix's official confirmation. For his part, Jamie Campbell-Bower wouldn't say if he'll return (via IGN (opens in new tab)). Unfortunately, season 4 fan favorite Eddie Munson (Joe Quinn) won't be back. He died at the hands of the Upside Down's demo-bats in season 4 episode 9, so Quinn is unlikely to return. Executive producer Shawn Levy doubled down on Eddie's journey ending, too, telling The Hollywood Reporter (opens in new tab) it was "highly unlikely" Eddie would be back in some guise. Don't expect any new characters to be introduced in Stranger Things season 5, too. Speaking to IndieWire (opens in new tab), the Duffer brothers explained that they only introduce new individuals to the franchise if they're going to be "integral to the narrative". And, with the fifth season set to primarily focus on the core cast – more on this later – the Duffers don't think it's likely that new characters will be part of proceedings. "[We] just like shaking it up, so we shake it up by changing the plot or adding in a new monster," Matt Duffer said. "We're doing our best to resist [adding new characters] for season 5. We're trying not to do that so we can focus on the original characters, I guess." Stranger Things season 5 plot Stranger Things season 5 has plenty of plot threads to wrap up. (Image credit: Netflix) There's very little information on Stranger Things season 5's plot. However, speaking during the Stranger Things season 4 volume 2 unlocked episode (opens in new tab), the Duffer brothers have teased what to expect. "It's going to be unlike any other season," Matt Duffer suggested. "We're starting season 5 and things are already going. In the way Max was impacted by [season] three and how that impacted her narrative in four, Dustin has been impacted a lot by the death of Eddie, so that's going to impact his storyline in five. We're going to see a side of him we've not seen before. It's also going to be like season one on steroids." "Our characters are going after Vecna from minute one," Ross Duffer added. "We have a lot to do, in terms of a few more revelations, and also we need to make sure we give our characters time to make these final arcs." Based on how Stranger Things 4 ended – read our season 4 part 2 ending explainer article for more – there are storylines Stranger Things season 5 will need to tie up to give the series a satisfying conclusion. For starters, it's likely that our heroes will band together and try to stop Vecna and the Upside Down once and for all. The show's major players were all back in Hawkins by the time season 4's credits rolled so, while they're likely to break up into smaller groups cover as much ground as possible, they'll still effectively be working together. Based on the Duffer brothers' comments on the Happy Sad Confused podcast (opens in new tab), that seems likely, too. The siblings have strongly suggested that Stranger Things season 5 will go back to the show's roots and bring its protagonists together in a final fight with Vecna and the Mind Flayer. "We want to go back to a lot things we did in season 1 and a lot of the original groupings and pairings that we had in season 1," Matt Duffer explained. "There's something nice about coming full circle. So, it's going to feel bigger than season 1 and much more massive in terms of the stakes and the scale, but we want to revisit a lot of things we did." Potential Stranger Things season 5 spoilers follow from now on. Vecna should return as the big bad in Stranger Things season 5. (Image credit: Netflix) Let's discuss Vecna now. The last we saw of Henry Creel/One/Vecna, he'd been severely injured by Nancy, Steve, and Robin at Creel House. When the trio leave to locate his body, though, Vecna is gone. Vecna is sure to have survived and likely crawled away to recover from his wounds. Technically, he was victorious at the end of season 4, too – Max died for a whole minute following his attack on her, enabling four major gates to the Upside Down to converge in the center of Hawkins, and allowing it to merge with the real world. So Vecna should be back, as he'll want to finish what he started – i.e. destroying earth and replacing it with the Upside Down. Interestingly, TikTok user colt40tyfive (opens in new tab) has come up with a theory that may tie Karen Wheeler to Vecna. Based on Karen's season 4 character poster – which contains a silhouette of Creel House – coly40tyfive thinks Karen is none other than Vecna's sister, aka Alice Creel. It's a cool theory, but we'll have to wait and see if it's correct or not. As for Max, nobody knows what condition she'll be in when season 5 arrives. Sink told Vulture (opens in new tab) that she expected Max to die in season 4, but the Duffer brothers were "never going to kill someone off for the sake of getting a gasp from the audience". In the same interview, Sink also claimed that Max is "at a place where where she now really wants to fight". We've suggested that Max's story could go one of two ways in Stranger Things season 5 and, based on Sink's comments, one sounds more likely than the other. Here's hoping she pulls through to play an integral part in the final showdown with Vecna. Speaking of character deaths, the cast and crew have thoughts on who may perish in the show's final season. In her chat with Vulture, Sink claimed the Duffer brothers would only kill off a character if it was "essential in terms of moving the plot along". That doesn't rule out major character deaths in season 5, but it sounds like they'll only happen if they're an important vehicle for the show's narrative. Despite that, Millie Bobby Brown has told the Duffer brothers that they need to kill off some big players in Stranger Things season 5. "[At the season 4 premiere], we couldn't even take one group picture because there were like 50 of us," Brown told The Wrap (opens in new tab). "I was like, 'You need to start killing people off.' The Duffer brothers are two sensitive Sallies that don't want to kill anyone off. We need to be Game of Thrones." The Man, The Myth, The Legend. pic.twitter.com/lC8QWm0L4dJuly 6, 2022See more The Duffers playfully responded to Brown's comments on the Happy Sad Confused podcast. "Believe us, we've explored all options in the writing room," they said. "Just as a complete hypothetical, if you kill Mike, that's depressing. We aren't Game of Thrones. This is Hawkins, it's not Westeros. The show becomes not Stranger Things anymore because you do have to treat it realistically, right?" Of the show's major characters, who is most likely to survive? If we had to guess, Eleven and Mike seem like they'll make it through Stranger Things season 5's endgame and get their happy ending. Hopper, Joyce, and Will have all been through a lot (much like Eleven), so we suspect they'll make it out alive. Everyone else, though, is fair game as far as we're concerned. Natalie Dyer hopes Nancy will live to tell the tale, however, telling Cosmopolitan (opens in new tab): "I hope she has a happy ending. I hope they all make it and they're not too traumatized after this. It's hard, but I really do put my trust in the Duffers to just come up with something way better than I ever could even fathom." Whether Nancy dies or not will be up to the Duffers, but it sounds like the Hawkins crew will be put through the wringer in Stranger Things 5 before we find out if one or more of them bite the dust. Teasing what fans can expect from the final season, Matt Duffer told TVLine (opens in new tab) that season 5 will likely feature a time jump, before revealing (via the Happy Sad Confused podcast) that it'll get right into the thick of the action from the get-go. That's before a tense and captivating final few episodes, which he describes as being Lord of the Rings-esque in tone. "We don't wrap things up at the end of 4," he said. "So, it's going to be moving, I don't know if it will be moving at 100 mph at the start of season 5, but it's going to be moving pretty fast. Characters are already going to be in action, they're already going to have a goal and a drive, and I think that's going to carve out at least a couple of hours and make this season feel really different. "It [the season 5 finale] is going to be Return of the King-ish with eight endings. If you just watch Return of the King, it feels like too many endings. [But] if you watch all of them back-to-back, which I've done multiple times, it's exactly right. If it were any shorter, it would feel cheap and wrong." hard to pick just 10 moments from s4, but if i had to it'd be these pic.twitter.com/QmX4XBtmGgJuly 29, 2022See more There are other subplots that Stranger Things season 5 needs to wrap up. Lieutenant Colonel Sullivan is sure to continue his tracking of Eleven, believing she's responsible for the deaths in and around Hawkins. Meanwhile, we need to see Eddie's death impacts the usually jovial Dustin – Gaten Matarazzo teasing in the season 4 volume 2 unlocked episode that "it's going to be rough for him to find a light at the end of the tunnel". Additionally, we need to know why the Upside Down is seemingly stuck in 1984 – you know, after Nancy found out that this was the case. And we still don't have all the answers about what the Upside Down is, why it's spookier and more dingy than the realm Henry Creel first traveled to, or what The Shadow/Mind Flayer is exactly. Speaking on the season 4 volume 2 unlocked episode, Ross Duffer said those queries will be answered soon. Then there's the loose end concerning number eight – aka Kali Prasad. We haven't seen Kali since season 2 and, unlike every other test subject under Doctor Brenner's supervision (who had telekinetic abilities), she had different powers. Why was she the odd one out? And will we ever see her again? It's possible that Stranger Things 5 won't answer these questions. After all, the Duffers have confirmed (via Variety (opens in new tab)) that they've retconned specific plot points from earlier seasons in later instalments, so maybe Kali's story is just one of those lingering mysteries we'll never get closure on. One thing the Duffers haven't done, though, is recut or edit scenes in earlier seasons. After GQ (opens in new tab) incorrectly suggested that the show's creative team had done so, the Stranger Things writers' Twitter account clapped back (opens in new tab), saying no such work had been carried out – a move forcing GQ to offer a sort-of-but-not-really apology on their original article. Lastly, the Duffer brothers have teased plenty more season 5 details on the Happy Sad Confused podcast. We won't cover them as there are some potentially big spoilers, such as character arcs, where season 5 is set, and how the finale might "upset" some people. You can listen to the full podcast (opens in new tab) if you want to learn more, but we'd strongly advise against this if you're avoiding spoilers pre-release. Stranger Things season 5 trailer Waiting on that Stranger Things season 5 trailer like... (Image credit: Netflix) There's no trailer yet. Once one is released, we'll update this section. The future of Stranger Things There's more Stranger Things content on the way. (Image credit: Tina Rowden/Netflix) Stranger Things season 5 will bring the curtain down on the show's main story. Chatting to ScreenRant (opens in new tab), executive producer Shawn Levy said: "We never wanted to run on fumes and we wanted to only tell as much story as the brothers saw and feel with clarity. So it's been clear for a while that they know exactly where we're headed and this is the arc. We wouldn't want to stick around for one moment beyond that vision and the clarity of that voice." However, there are other Stranger Things projects in the works at Upside Down Pictures, aka the Duffer brothers' newly formed production company. Upside Down Pictures will develop movies and TV shows exclusively for Netflix, including a new live-action Death Note project, which fans of the iconic manga don't want to happen. Alongside that TV adaptation and other non-Stranger Things productions, Netflix confirmed that two Stranger Things spin-off projects were also in the works. Firstly, a stage play – set in the world and mythology of Stranger Things – is on the way. It'll be produced by multi-award winning duo Sonia Friedman and Stephen Daldry, whose works include The Crown and Billy Elliot, alongside Netflix. Daldry has also been installed as the stage play's director. Meanwhile, a Stranger Things spin-off is in the early stages of development. There's no concrete information about it, but Netflix states that it'll be an "original idea" from the Duffer brothers, and we don't expect the spin-off project to feature characters from the mainline series. Check out our thoughts on five spin-off ideas that could work. For more Stranger Things-based content, check out these five shows that you should watch while we wait for season 5's arrival.Today's best Netflix deals (opens in new tab)Netflix Basic (opens in new tab)$9.99/mth (opens in new tab)View (opens in new tab)at Netflix (opens in new tab) (opens in new tab)Netflix Standard (opens in new tab)$15.49/mth (opens in new tab)View (opens in new tab)at Netflix (opens in new tab) (opens in new tab)Netflix Premium (opens in new tab)$19.99/mth (opens in new tab)View (opens in new tab)at Netflix (opens in new tab) Tom PowerEntertainment ReporterAs TechRadar's entertainment reporter, Tom covers all of the latest movies, TV shows, and streaming service news that you need to know about. You'll regularly find him writing about the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Star Wars, Netflix, Prime Video, Disney Plus, and many other topics of interest. An NCTJ-accredited journalist, Tom also writes reviews, analytical articles, opinion pieces, and interview-led features on the biggest franchises, actors, directors and other industry leaders. You may see his quotes pop up in the odd official Marvel Studios video, too, such as this Moon Knight TV spot (opens in new tab). Away from work, Tom can be found checking out the latest video games, immersing himself in his favorite sporting pastime of football, reading the many unread books on his shelf, staying fit at the gym, and petting every dog he comes across. Got a scoop, interesting story, or an intriguing angle on the latest news in entertainment? Feel free to drop him a line. See more TV news TechRadar Newsletter Sign up to get breaking news, reviews, opinion, analysis and more, plus the hottest tech deals! Thank you for signing up to TechRadar. You will receive a verification email shortly. There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again. 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