Stranger Things Final Season Gets Release Dates and New Footage

A brand-new Stranger Things season is on the way — we already saw a teaser for Season 5 this past September, but now Netflix has officially released a longer preview for the highly anticipated series finale. In the extended look at Season 5 of Stranger Things, viewers are promised everything they’ve been asking for since the last season ended: A genuine horror-fest, more showstopping action sequences, and an explosive ending to Hawkins’ supernatural saga.

The preview hits the ground running with a creepy montage that delivers on fans’ biggest desires. Creepy, Upside Down-version Hawkins moments (pun intended) are juxtaposed with classic Duffer brothers action, including live ammo and flamethrowers. The highlight of the teaser trailer, though, has to be Linda Hamilton’s arrival. The actress makes her Hawkins debut sporting a sweet gun and action-ready body armor — Hamilton is here to help close out the series in Hawkins-strength fashion.

Season 4 ended with a bang — Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower), the mastermind villain and new Upside Down monster-of-the-season, busted open a giant, rift-sized portal, and the Upside Down fully oozed into Hawkins. In the new trailer, we learn that Season 5 will pick up in the fall of 1987. This is significant for one major reason: It’s exactly three years since Will Byers’ initial disappearance in Season 1, which, of course, was what got the whole Stranger Things ball rolling in the first place.

Season 5 will be divided into eight feature-length episodes, which means it will play like eight full Stranger Things movies. With the curtain pulled back on a little more of the season’s story, we can get a good idea of the scope of what’s in store for Hawkins this season.

The description of the season says: “Hawkins is forever changed following the opening of the Rifts. A unified team of old and new heroes must locate and kill Vecna, but they don’t know where to find him. In the meantime, Vecna has no idea what they’re up to. The U.S. government has quarantined the town under military rule and is dead set on catching Eleven, so she’s once again on the run. Tensions are high as the anniversary of Will’s disappearance nears. The final battle is coming, and this time the enemy is darker, stronger, and deadlier than ever before. The only thing that can save Hawkins is the full party.”

Amybeth McNulty and Gabriella Pizzolo, who have returned for previous Stranger Things seasons, will also be back for Season 5, reprising their roles as Vicki and Dustin’s girlfriend Suzie, respectively.

In addition to the old favorites, viewers are in for a few brand-new characters in the final season. Linda Hamilton will be appearing as Dr. Kay, but the Duffer brothers are also bringing in Nell Fisher, Jake Connelly, and Alex Breaux as new additions to the cast of Stranger Things. Nell Fisher will be playing the role of Holly Wheeler, Jake Connelly will be Derek Turnbow, and Alex Breaux will be Lt. Akers.

One great action sequence in the teaser has Lucas hiding from demo-dogs, on the ground and under a desk, while others hide on the shelves above. The scene is a sure-fire reminder of the Jurassic Park kitchen scene with the velociraptors and, of course, it has Lucas and the gang chanting “Run, Speedy, run!” in the background. Though the Duffer brothers are no newcomers to shooting scenes with classic nerd-rock-star moments, some other callbacks are just for die-hard, psychological horror fans. The one word, “found you,” is enough to get the hair on the back of your neck up.

The teaser also gives us a glimpse of Eddie Munson’s gravestone, covered with the words “Burn in hell” spray-painted on it. Eddie’s death at the hands of Vecna in the Season 4 finale was as hard as they come, as Eddie’s final moments could be the most gut-wrenching scene since Bob Newby in Season 2. It’s a beautiful and heroic sacrifice for his friend Mike, but Hawkins clearly hasn’t gotten the whole story of Vecna and the Upside Down and still sees Eddie as the big bad. It’s a dark touch on what should be a fun and nostalgic trailer that fans will not soon forget.

The fact that the season has been separated into three installments, and thus will take viewers months to finally get the complete story of Stranger Things Season 5, will likely be annoying to many. Fans are just going to have to be patient, at least for now. Volume 1 drops on November 26, 2025. Volume 2 will release on December 25, 2025. The grand finale of Stranger Things will release on December 31, 2025 — New Year’s Eve, if anyone happens to forget.

2024 just got a lot more exciting with the promise of Stranger Things Season 5. The season that Hawkins has been waiting for, but in true Stranger Things fashion, fans won’t have it all at once. The final moments will be here before you know it, though.

As the new trailer makes apparent, this is the end of the road. This is the final payoff to the young cast and audience that have stuck with the Duffer brothers through the rise and fall of the Hawkins National Laboratory, B Hawkins Science Boys, the amazing town that time forgot, and basically an entire generation of pop culture.

Stranger Things Season 5 is coming in three parts, for better or worse, but all that matters is that everyone makes it out alive, all is well, and the Hawkins crew never has to deal with paranormal hijinks again.