Stranger Things season 5: Release date speculation, cast and latest news

Speaking about season 5, Finn Wolfhard – who plays Mike Wheeler – confirmed that the cast have yet to discover how the ending will unfold, but said he hopes there will be a definitive end for each character.

He told Access Online: "Truly, I would love a Lord of the Rings style happy ending. They’re waiting to give us the last episode, we’ve read up to the second-to-last episode so we’re all on the edge of our seats to find out what the ending is."

Wolfhard previously said that the season"answers an insane amount of questions about the lore of Stranger Things, the world-building".

He continued: "I think a lot of people will be happy... It's the last season, so we kind of want to get back to the roots of why the show was so special in the first place, and why the dynamics are so special in the first place, and sort of getting back to that."

While things remain under wraps for now as to the specifics of season 5, we do know that the final instalment will pick up straight after the end of season 4, which saw the California gang return to Hawkins and take on the Lord of The Upside Down.

Producer Shawn Levy previously promised a strong storyline for the Noah Schnapp character, telling RadioTimes.com: "When we give Noah the juicy stuff, he delivers, and season 5 will be doing that once again."

Levy also teased that there will be "big tears, lots of them" in the final outing.

Here's everything we know so far about Stranger Things season 5!

Stranger Things season 5 release date speculation

We don't have a confirmed release date just yet but, at this rate, we're expecting Stranger Things season 5 sometime in 2025.

Filming began in January 2024 and is ongoing in Atlanta, Georgia. The Duffer Brothers confirmed the start of production with a full cast photo, which you can see below.

The image included Max Mayfield star Sadie Sink – confirming her return after her character's fate was left up in the air at the end of season 4.

While filming was expected to begin in June 2023, it had to be delayed due to the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, which have since been resolved.

We also don't yet know what release model the new season will take. Seasons 1 to 3 all released their entire runs in one go, while season 4 was released in two volumes, with volume 1 containing seven episodes and volume 2 containing two.

Whether season 5 sticks with this new split model, we'll have to wait and see.

However, we've got a few Stranger Things related releases to tide us over, including the new play The First Shadow, which is currently running on the West End!

How many episodes will there be in Stranger Things season 5?

Stranger Things season 5 will consist of eight episodes.

We don't know all of the episode titles just yet, but we do know the first will be titled The Crawl.

Season 5 will be one episode shorter than season 4 and will also consist of shorter episodes - except for the big finale, which is set to be "pretty massive".

"The runtimes being as long as they were was something of a surprise to us. Ross and I have been trying to analyse how they ended up that long, because the scripts aren’t even that long," Matt Duffer told The Hollywood Reporter.

"We’ve realised that our writing style has changed a little bit, in terms of how we space out description. I think that added to some length. Also, we had an additional plot with Hopper in Russia. It’s a pretty dense season. We weren’t sure they were that long, really, until we got into edit."

Ross added: "Our concern is pacing. If we can hold your interest for an hour and 15 minutes, then that’s a win. We did discuss breaking up [the finale]. We ultimately decided if it’s too long for someone, they can pause it and they can come back. It’s like reading a book. You can watch it at your own pace."

Matt added on the Happy Sad Confused podcast: "The only reason we don't expect it to be as long is because if you look at it, it's almost a two-hour ramp-up [in season 4] before our kids really get drawn into the supernatural mystery."

He continued: "You get to know them, you get to see them in their lives, what they're struggling with, adapting to high school, and so forth. Steve's trying to find a date, all of that. None of that obviously is going to be occurring in the first two episodes of [season 5]."

As well as shorter episode runtimes, the Duffers have also teased that season 5 will feature a time jump to explain the young cast's ageing and bring the characters' ages in line with the actors'.

In an interview with Variety, executive producer Shawn Levy said that the team would "use all the tools available to us" to make the actors look younger, with some inferring that digital de-ageing would be utilised to achieve the effect.

However, speaking with Deadline, Levy confirmed this was not the case, saying: "No, I kind of was surprised that one sentence I said around this topic travelled so widely."

He continued: "The bottom line is, we know what we're doing on this show. Our cast is brilliant. And these characters that the Duffers [Matt and Ross Duffer, showrunners] have created are so vivid. I'm not worried about everyone suiting back up and bringing them to life."

Who could return to the Stranger Things season 5 cast?

After the Duffer Brothers posted a full cast picture when filming began, we've got a bit of an idea as to who we're expecting to see back in business.

Here's a full list of the cast we'd expect to be back for Stranger Things season 5:

• Noah Schnapp as Will Byers
• Winona Ryder as Joyce Byers
• David Harbour as Jim Hopper
• Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven/Jane Hopper
• Finn Wolfhard as Mike Wheeler
• Gaten Matarazzo as Dustin Henderson
• Caleb McLaughlin as Lucas Sinclair
• Sadie Sink as Max Mayfield
• Natalia Dyer as Nancy Wheeler
• Charlie Heaton as Jonathan Byers
• Joe Keery as Steve Harrington
• Maya Hawke as Robin Buckley
• Brett Gelman as Murray Bauman
• Priah Ferguson as Erica Sinclair
• Paul Reiser as Dr Sam Owens
• Jamie Campbell Bower as Peter Ballard/Henry Creel/One/Vecna
• Cara Buono as Karen Wheeler
• Gabriella Pizzolo as Susie

Plus, we officially have a new entrant! Joining the line-up as a newcomer is Linda Hamilton, whose casting was announced at a TUDUM fan event.

Two characters that likely won't be back for more are Eddie Munson (Joseph Quinn) and Dr Brenner (Matthew Modine), who both met their ends in season 4. However, Quinn told RadioTimes.com about how pleased he was with Eddie's journey.

"I think there's a great beginning, there's a great middle and a great end for the character," he told us.

"And as an actor, you want characters with those kinds of arcs. So whilst it would have been great to come back for another season and get together with all those lovely people again, I think it was a brilliantly realised ending for a brilliantly written character."

Meanwhile, Modine told RadioTimes.com about how he'd love to return – so perhaps that door isn't completely shut.

Elsewhere, it seems one beloved character won't be returning despite making it out of season 4 alive – Eduardo Franco's Argyle.

Introduced in season 4, Argyle was a friend of Jonathan Byers (played by Charlie Heaton). He quickly became a key part of the season, rescuing Jonathan, Will (Noah Schnapp), Mike (Finn Wolfhard) and Agent Harmon (Ira Amyx) before helping Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) fight Vecna.

Asked if he'll be part of the final season, he told Steve Varley on the Steve Varley Show: "It's nice to hear that there's, you know, concern or something, you know what I mean? But I never got a phone call. So I think, yeah, I think that's it."

Someone whose fate was left more open is Sadie Sink's Max, with the character currently in a coma and doctors unsure if she'll ever wake up.

However, a photo posted by the Duffer Brothers to celebrate the start of production confirms that she's back in at least some capacity.

What's more, things are (for once) looking hopeful for Will, after Schnapp teased a "beautiful" ending for the character.

"I can just tell you that I'm very very excited for what's to come. I think they did a great job with Will's character this season, and beautifully addressed everything they needed to," he told Forbes.

"The way they closed the show is just perfect – the story started with Will, and it’ll end with Will."

What will Stranger Things season 5 be about?

Stranger Things season 5 will follow the final battle for Hawkins, after season 4 was left on a major cliffhanger. While we don't exactly know what that will entail, we do have some clues.

When season 5 was first announced, the Duffer Brothers said in a statement that the "complete story arc" was planned out seven years ago, and that the fifth outing will see the culmination of that plan.

In a later interview with SFX, they confirmed that the ending still fits "the rough sketch" they created, but it has become "more interesting and exciting than originally envisioned by [them] and Ross".

They said: "We know what the ending is. It's conceivable that it changes, but I think it's unlikely because it's one of those endings that just feels, and has always felt, right. And it also feels sort of inevitable. Then when you come up with it, you're like, 'Oh yeah, well, that is absolutely what is has to be.'"

The season is also sure to tie in some details from the West End play, The First Shadow, which focuses on Henry Creel/Vecna's backstory.

For Stranger Things Day last year, the Duffer brothers released the first line of the script – so we know exactly how the show will begin. Buckle in, it's a chilling one.

"Darkness. The sound of cold wind. Groaning trees. And.... a child's voice. Singing a familiar song," the script reads.

Of course, theories on which song the script could be referencing have flooded the internet in the wake of the scene reveal.

Many believe it could be Kate Bush's Running Up That Hill, which ultimately didn't save Max (Sadie Sink) from succumbing to Vecna, but which could be keeping her alive, should she be in a different dimension.

Other popular theories include Will's season 1 favourite, Should I Stay Or Should I Go Now by The Clash.

Also chatting about how emotional the series will be, Ross Duffer told The Wrap that when the creators pitched the final outing to Netflix "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."

Another thing we know is that season 5 is likely to feature a time jump, as Ross Duffer previously told TVLine: "I'm sure we will do a time jump. Ideally, we'd have shot [seasons 4 and 5] back to back, but there was just no feasible way to do that. So these are all discussions we're going to have with our writers when we start the room up."

During an appearance on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Stranger Things star David Harbour said of the scripts: "Before the strike we were sent scripts, they're terrific, as per usual. They continue to outdo themselves, these currently-on-strike writers called the Duffer Brothers."

Talking about the season 5 finale, he added: "It's a hell of an undertaking, too. I mean, the set-pieces and the things in the scripts that we saw are bigger than anything we've done in the past".

Harbour also revealed that the fifth instalment will pick up shortly after the events of the season 4 finale, adding: "After where season 4 ended — when you watch us on that hill looking at the ash and the smoke and fires – we're going to start somewhere after that. So you've got to imagine the world is a different place."

During an interview with Josh Horowitz on his Happy Sad Confused podcast, the Duffer Brothers teased a brisk pace for the final season, which will take place in Hawkins and pick up from season 4's cliffhanger ending, which saw The Upside Down finally merge with the regular world.

Duffer added: "For the first time ever, we don't wrap things up at the end of [season] 4, so... 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 hours and make this season feel really different."

Meanwhile, Levy promised that the final season of the hit show will be "as big as any of the biggest movies that we see".

He added to Total Film: "There’s no way to be contiguous with season 4, and not, frankly, expand scale and depth. It’s major, major, cinematic storytelling that happens to be called a TV series."

We can't wait to find out more!

Is there a trailer for Stranger Things season 5?

No, there isn't a trailer available for Stranger Things season 5 just yet, but we'll make sure to keep this page updated as soon as we have any further news or a trailer becomes available.

In the meantime, why not check out the trailer for the Stranger Things play, The First Shadow?

Stranger Things seasons 1-4 are available on Netflix now. Sign up for Netflix from £4.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream.

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