Stranger Things (2016-2025): The Final Chapter
Photo courtesy of Netflix/Wikimedia Commons
The release of the final season of Stranger Things (2016-2025) was highly anticipated, but didn’t quite manage to stick the landing.
Released on Dec. 31, 2025 on Netflix at 8 p.m. EST, myself and millions around the world shared the experience of watching the final episode of the deeply cherished television show Stranger Things (2016-2025), which took its final breath after almost a decade of airing.
To provide a brief overview, the sci-fi, horror drama Netflix series, Stranger Things (2016-2025), written and directed by two, at the time relatively rookie brothers, Matt and Ross Duffer, or more familiarly, the Duffer brothers. The series takes place in the 1980s in Hawkins, Indiana, a small, “where nothing ever happens” town. Well, you guessed it—strange things start happening. The story follows the mysterious disappearance of a young boy, Will Byers, the frantic search to find him, all while they uncover government conspiracies and discover supernatural parallel dimensions.
Stranger Things (2016-2025) became an overnight global phenomenon, making it only appropriate to recognize it as one of the most iconic television shows of this generation. Notably, its cultural impact has been, for lack of better word, grand. According to Variety, since the release of the final season, the series has been watched over 1.2 billion times and contributed approximately 1.4 billion dollars to the U.S. economy. The show has also contributed to a major cultural revival of 1980s music. The show has helped Kate Bush earn her first ever Top 10 hit in the US with “Running Up That Hill” and influenced Tiffany’s “I Think We’re Alone Now” to jump 880 percent in Spotify streaming views. Netflix also reported that interest in Dungeons & Dragons “has grown 673%” since the show's debut.
The fifth and final season of Stranger Things (2016-25) was released in three volumes, consisting of eight total episodes. Volume I, consisting of four episodes, released on Nov. 26, 2025. Volume 2 released on Dec. 25 with three episodes, and the series finale episode released on Dec. 31. Naturally, excited social media users shared their theories, usually with incredible complexity and detail. The theories continued to persist after the release of the final episode in the midst of the mixed reviews the finale received.
One of the most viral fan theories was the “conformity gate” theory. As an article from The Guardian explains, this theory hypothesized that the finale's “40-minute epilogue was all an illusion created by the show’s mind-controlling villain Vecna,” and that “a secret final episode, showing what had really happened, would be released on 7 January, at 8pm US Eastern Time.” Some dissatisfaction was so extreme that a petition urged the release of a secret final episode circulated the internet. Final renditions can be notoriously challenging to land, so naturally the reviews were mixed. But it is safe to say that a generous handful of viewers were left dissatisfied with the show's ending.
In response to the ambivalent reception of the finale, Ross Duffer tells The Hollywood Reporter, “There’s always a lot of noise. Obviously, that was more noise.” Matt Duffer added on to express their pride in the finale, stating, “At the end of the day, that’s what matters to us. But people are extremely, extremely passionate about the characters in the show. Ross and I have always said about the final season, in terms of making sure we don’t have any regrets, that we put absolutely everything we had into the season — blood, sweat and tears.”
For those, like me, who feel absolutely shattered by this end of an era, do not fret, for the Stranger Things universe is not going anywhere but onwards. The story of Stranger Things will continue to persist through various forms of media and entertainment. In 2023, an official
prequel stage play called Stranger Things: The First Shadow was released. The play takes place in Hawkins 1959, and explores the inception of the Stranger Things story and the origins of Henry Creel (aka Vecna). The highly acclaimed production, written by Kate Trefry and directed by Stephen Daldry and Justin Martin, has received outstanding reviews. Both the London (West End) and New York City (Broadway) shows have ratings exceeding 90 percent, and in 2025 they humbly won four Tony Awards.
On Apr. 23, 2026, the animated Netflix series, Stranger Things: Tales from 85’ (2026) is scheduled to release. Additionally, the Duffer Brothers have confirmed a Stranger Things spin-off, sharing that while the one they are currently writing will be “exploring new characters and a new mythology,” it will be touching on familiar concepts. Matt Duffer states, “this spinoff does connect and will answer some of the lingering questions. It’s not specifically about the Mind Flayer or the Upside Down, but hopefully it provides some answers to at least those lingering questions related to Henry’s memory.”
At the end of the day, whether or not the finale was your cup of tea, Stranger Things (2016-2025) remains one of the defining shows of this generation. It brought people together, revived nostalgia, and created a world that fans will carry with them long after the final credits rolled. Even though this chapter has closed, the legacy of Hawkins, and the love surrounding it, is far from over.