Netflix already revealed some major spoilers for Stranger Things Season 5's finale. Stranger Things 5 Volume 2 has come and gone on Christmas Day as one of the Netflix series' most controversial runs ever. Coming off Volume 1's dramatic cliffhanger, there were some major events scattered across the three new episodes. This all lays the groundwork for the two-hour finale, which will premiere on Netflix on Wednesday, December 31, thus concluding Stranger Things.
Sadie Sink's Max Mayfield is finally back in Hawkins after escaping from Camazotz and waking up from her coma. Noah Schnapp's Will Byers officially came out in front of all his friends and family, facing his fears after becoming the Sorcerer. Charlie Heaton's Jonathan Byers and Natalie Dyer's Nancy Wheeler broke up as they faced death in the Upside Down. The Upside Down was revealed to be a bridge to another dimension called The Abyss, and Vecna is enacting a plan to merge this corrupted realm into the main world after assembling his 12 children.
Vecna's Origins Will Be Revealed (But They Already Were?)
Currently, Vecna's true origins remain unseen in Stranger Things, but that is all about to change in the imminent series finale. Co-creator Matt Duffer confirmed to Variety that Henry Creel's time with the Mind Flayer that gave him control of the Upside Down will be some of the "most revelatory" moments in the finale:
Matt Duffer: "But the big thing is Henry’s backstory specifically, and his connection to the Mind Flayer. So those are the two areas that I think are the most revelatory or impactful as we move into the final episode."
For everyday Stranger Things fans, this may sound like a dream come true, but those who caught The First Shadow (which debuted last year) will know this story was already unraveled in the canon stage play.
The young Henry Creel encountered the Mind Flayer in the 1950s after coming across experimental technology in a Nevada cave. Upon being accidentally transported into The Abyss, he encountered the Mind Flayer, who infected him and gave him his abilities, thus turning him into Vecna.
Those following closely may realize this cave is the very same one in which Max Mayfield and Holly Wheeler hide in Camazotz, thus explaining why Vecna is scared to enter in Stranger Things 5 due to this traumatic memory.
He was later discovered by Dr. Martin Brenner and turned into 001 before Eleven eventually banished him through a gate into another dimension, where Henry became Vecna. Eventually, he would encounter the Mind Flayer once again and develop a complicated relationship where he took control of the hive mind.
Vecna Has Another Upside Down Fight Brewing
The First Shadow confirmed that Vecna and the Mind Flayer have been working together with some strange relationship for many years now, but Netflix may be hinting that they will come to blows in the Stranger Things finale.
Netflix may have offered one spoiler for the Stranger Things finale with the "Mission Upside Down" t-shirt that has been listed for sale. The spoilery merch highlights the conflict between Vecna and the Mind Flayer.
One could initially speculate that Netflix's telling Stranger Things t-shirt simply depicts Vecna seizing control from the Mind Flayer many years ago. However, the description notes that the battle design captures "the scope of the final battle," Implying they may come to blows in the Season 5 finale:
"The ultimate threat, the ultimate shirt. This oversized, faded tee pits the Mind Flayer and Vecna against each other in one epic design, capturing the scope of the final battle to resolve all mysteries. Wear the history of the Upside Down's most terrifying villains as our heroes seek to finally eradicate the threat."
Currently, this t-shirt places Vecna above the Mind Flayer in the hierarchy of the Upside Down, but some have theorized that the powerful entity is the true mastermind, using Henry Creel to help him build a new body.
A leaked trailer for the finale circulated on social media after Volume 2's release, and one clip shows a group of characters looking to the skies in the Upside Down as an unknown monster emerges from the clouds. This could conceivably be a new body that has formed for the Mind Flayer going into the finale.
Will Byers actor Noah Schnapp may have spoiled Henry's redemption in Stranger Things 5 as he answered "low-key, Vecna" when asked who the series' most understood villain is. Perhaps the Mind Flayer will become Stranger Things' final big-bad, leading to Vecna's redemption as he assists in his defeat.
The Finale Is a Grand-Scale Character Piece
During an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Ross Duffer confirmed that, with The Party's Operation Beanstalk already in place after Episode 7, the series finale will be "starting at a sprint," leaving more time at the latter end:
Ross Duffer: "What we really wanted to make sure we did this year with the penultimate episode was get the plan in motion so that episode 8 can start at a sprint as opposed to generally with our finales where they're building the plans and it's climaxing. This way, by just starting at a sprint, one, it's fun, but also it gave us more time on the backend to spend with these characters and wrap this up properly because we didn't wanna feel rushed at the end. We wanted to be able to take the time that we felt that these characters deserved."
Matt Duffer added how, while "The Rightside Up" is "very large in scale," it is arguably the most "character-focussed" in the whole eight-episode season:
Matt Duffer: "It's very large in scale, but I think it's more character-focused than any of the other episodes in the season. With the 2-hour runtime, you're able to do both."
Previously, speaking with Variety, Ross Duffer hinted that the finale will have something of an epilogue ending in the "last 35 [to 40] minutes." It seems that, with the Upside Down conflict resolved, the final act of the two-hour finale will focus on "saying goodbye" to the Stranger Things crew:
Ross Duffer: “Particularly the last 35 minutes, 40 minutes, of that episode are us processing the end of the show and saying goodbye to these actors. We just finished editing all those scenes, and…It was emotional, just to edit it. Because these people, they weren’t acting in this moment.”
In terms of the last thing fans will see from Stranger Things, Ross Duffer confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter that the final scene has been plotted for years and was the "first thing [they] broke" when writing Season 5. As such, he was clear that everything in the finale is building toward the mysterious moment:
"We feel really happy with how the show ended up. I think in the finale, in particular, the last scene, which again, we’ve had an idea of what that scene was going to be like for years, and when we sat down to break season five, it’s the first thing we broke. Everything is really building to that moment and making sure that works."
Eleven Has a Choice to Make
Speaking with Collider, Ross Duffer pointed out that Stranger Things has been consistently split between "two antagonists" - the supernatural and human - leaving the question of how both can ever truly be defeated:
"Well, you know, there's always been sort of two antagonists across every season of the show. There's always a supernatural threat, but there's always a human threat to or often a military threat, obviously, which began season one with Brenner. So we really wanted to talk about this idea of, yeah, even if you defeat the supernatural evil, how do you stop the human evil? And what does that look like?"
He noted that it was this conflict that fueled the return of Eleven's sister Kali (008) in Season 5, as she offers a "very different point of view" to Mike Wheeler. While he is ever the optimist, seeing a bright future for him and Eleven together, her outlook could be seen as "more realistic:"
"And that's a big reason why we brought Kali back into the show, because she represents a very different point of view than Mike, where he's all thinking about rainbows and butterflies on the other side of this. And her outlook is much more pessimistic. And you could say, I mean, perhaps more grounded, at least from her point of view, or more realistic."
Kali posed this dilemma to Eleven during Volume 2, pointing out that there will always be another Dr. Brenner or Dr. Kay who looks to weaponize them. As such, she suggested that the two super-powered experiments must stay on the bridge as they close the Upside Down for good and vanish with it to prevent that.
Ross Duffer noted that Eleven is "caught between these two worldviews," leaving her fate and decision uncertain going into the finale:
"And so you have Eleven sort of caught between these two worldviews. And we really wanted that to be the big question of, 'What is she going to do? And what does life look like after this, if they are able to defeat this evil?'"
Will a Stranger Things Icon Die In the Finale?
In the same interview with The Hollywood Reporter discussed earlier, Matt Duffer proclaimed that Stranger Things is not Game of Thrones, and fans shouldn't be bracing for a "Red Wedding situation" that kills off many fan favorites.
However, Matt declared that there are events in the finale that he considered to be "very surprising," and he hopes they lead to a resolution that "doesn't feel painful but feels satisfying" after an eight-year journey:
"It’s not Game of Thrones. We’re not in Westeros. I love Game of Thrones, but it’s just a very different type of show than that. There’s not going to be a Red Wedding situation. I think some things happen in the finale that are very surprising, but we’re not trying to shock or upset anyone. I hope by the time people get to the end of the finale that it just feels like there’s something inevitable about what happens, and that it doesn’t feel painful but feels satisfying.
The Stranger Things boss zoned in on Joe Keery's Steve "The Hair" Harrington, implying that his death or sacrifice may be the "next logical" step for the character as he keeps putting himself in more danger:
"We’ll see. But as for Steve’s fate. I don’t know. I can’t say. It would be the next logical step. He keeps getting beaten up more and more. The only way we could take it further is death."
Furthermore, a leaked trailer for the finale shows David Harbour's Hopper holding back a screaming, crying Dustin Henderson in the Upside Down, raising more concerns for Steve's fate after their heart-to-heart in Volume 2.
The Duffer Brothers' comments come after Stranger Things has faced criticism for a lack of deaths and, therefore, stakes in Season 5. This comes after years of theories as to which Hawkins heroes will fall victim to the final battle, and yet the current outlook has many questioning if anyone will bite the dust before the credits.
