The supernatural meets alternate dimensions in a small rural town. What’s not to love about “Stranger Things?” After nine years of running, the show is coming to an end with a two-hour, five-minute finale of the fifth season set to release on New Year’s Eve.
“Stranger Things” takes place in the fictional town of Hawkins, Indiana during the 1980s, when young Will Byers vanishes. Unbeknownst to everyone else, Will is taken to a parallel dimension called the Upside Down by a Demogorgon, a creature from the role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons.
Though the rest of the town pronounces him dead, his mother Joyce Byers, Police Chief Jim Hopper and Will’s closest friends Mike Wheeler, Dustin Henderson, and Lucas Sinclair continue to search for him. During their search, they stumble upon Eleven, an escapee from Hawkins Laboratory, and Dr. Brenner, a head scientist at the laboratory whom she calls “Papa.” What comes next involves telekinesis, chocolate pudding, Eggo waffles and a blonde wig.
Though originally intended to be only one season, “Stranger Things” season five captured the eyes of 59.6 million viewers worldwide in its first five days after releasing on Netflix. With the release of Volume 2 on December 25 and the finale six days later, viewers wait with bated breath, especially after the three years that have passed since the last season.
“Every character’s ending needed to feel right,” co-creator Matt Duffer said to People Magazine. “That was more important than providing the fans with the ending they’re hoping for.”
Still, theories and rumors have circulated, such as whether Will will be the key to destroying Vecna, who’s in control when it comes to Vecna and the Mind Flayer, and who is surviving past Episode Five: “Shock Jock” after some leaked images.
As a dramatic and heart-breaking answer to these questions, the season five finale is set to premiere in over 500 theaters on New Year’s Eve.
“Getting to see it on the big screen, with incredible sound, picture, and a room full of fans, feels like the perfect […] way to celebrate the end of this adventure,” series co-creators Matt and Ross Duffer told Tudum.
Noah Schnapp, who plays Will Byers, said in an interview with People Magazine, “I’m gonna miss, like, our family of Stranger Things. Not just the cast, though, the crew, and everyone at Netflix who’s worked on it.”
“I was so happy with my character’s ending,” Finn Wolfhard, the actor for Mike Wheeler, confessed in April after reading and shooting the finale. “I was satisfied, but I was also very confused and sad, but also very happy.”
The Duffer Brothers capture the hearts of many viewers, who sit impatiently waiting for the final chapter of this twisting and turning story. The only question that remains: what is going to happen?
