On November 26th, Season 5 of the beloved TV series, Stranger Things was released. Coming out in volumes, the first volume, containing four episodes, came out on November 26, and fans are eagerly awaiting the next volume, which is scheduled for release on December 25th. The final episode comes out on New Year’s Eve and will be screened in over 500 theaters across the U.S. and Canada. Netflix and the creators, Matt and Ross Duffer, confirm that the final episode will be 2 hours and 5 minutes long, leaving fans excited for what’s yet to come.
Stranger Things is a highly respected show, winning over 80 awards, including 12 Primetime Emmy Awards and a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Ensemble in a Drama Series. This is not often seen in a television series with only 38 episodes. As it enters its farewell season, Netflix confirms awards submissions. At the Golden Globes, the show competes again for Best Television Series, Drama.
Individually, all cast members enter in the support categories. Male submissions include: David Harbour, Finn Wolfhard, Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb McLaughlin, Noah Schnapp, and Jamie Campbell Bower. The female submissions will be Winona Ryder, Millie Bobby Brown, Sadie Sink, Natalia Dyer, and Maya Hawke. The cast and crew clearly work their hardest to go out with a bang.
The creators of the show, the Duffer Brothers, state that Season 5 brings the show’s story “full circle,” answering questions from the beginning, and focusing on the core cast. Hoping to avoid plot holes and fan disappointments, they claim the season returns to the show’s roots and explains the origin of the Upside Down. In its original form, the Upside Down is called the Nether. Based on the real town of Montauk, New York (the show’s original name as well), where an unexplained conspiracy surrounds the disappearance of a ten-year-old boy. In addition to the mysteries, unexplainable events occurr all over the town. If the show had been able to film in the New York location, maybe things would have been all different. Even the name Wormhole Things may have been real, and Eleven was supposed to be a boy named Duncan. Good thing Indiana was free for these 10 years of entertainment. While the wait has felt like a lifetime to superfans, this well-planned story will be quite worth it.
Most of the main cast members started Season 1as kids, about 12-13 years old. The Duffer Brothers auditioned 906 boys and 307 girls for the children’s roles, but eventually found the core group they were looking for. Due to its massive success, Stranger Things gives the cast so many opportunities. This includes Millie Bobby Brown, who plays Eleven on the show, launches her makeup brand Florence by Mills, and Joe Keery, who plays Steve Harrington, develops his music career as Djo, famously for his song “End of Beginning”. Season 5 introduces many new characters, including Nell Fisher as Holly Wheeler and Jake Connelly as Delightful Derek. Stranger Things marks Jake’s first major role, and he no doubt continues to grow in popularity as the season progresses. Excitingly, North Broward Eagle, Caroline Abrams, also joins the cast, playing Tina Turnbow, Derek’s brother and Erica Sinclair’s best frenemy. Caroline shares, “It was an insanely cool experience, especially getting to meet the cast.” In her scene, Tina refuses to eat a drugged pie, and after the rest of her family passes out, Erica stabs a needle into a screaming Tina, delivering the fan favorite line, “…and I told you to eat your damn pie…” (The Turnbow Takeover 49:35).
Stranger Things becomes a major pop culture, generating record-breaking revenue for Netflix, reviving fun ‘80s aesthetics, and launching future superstars. The show acts as a love letter to this era, featuring songs like Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill” and Metallica’s “Master of Puppets,” which have soar back up to the charts decades later. It connects both parents and their kids, offering a shared viewing experience that brings together generations. Additionally, it has brought “nerd” cultures into the mainstream, leading to a significant rise in the sales of Dungeons and Dragons. Its success stems from a unique blend of nostalgia, character-driven storytelling, and genre fusion. The beauty of Stranger Things lies in how families can come together to watch it, each finding a character to relate to. Even if they’re not slaying demogorgons. Audiences have watch the cast grow up alongside them, creating a special bond. At its core, the show celebrates friendship and the importance of embracing being different.
