Netflix’s “Stranger Things 5” is approaching.
The final season of the beloved series will arrive in time for the holidays – specifically, in three batches over Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s. Ahead of its arrival, Netflix has unveiled a featurette that looks back over the years, with some teases of what’s to come. Watch it below.
The featurette does a good job of reminding you what made the series such a cultural phenomenon in the first place, with quotes from the cast and crew. And there is, of course, footage from the show’s past – including some utterly adorable behind-the-scenes material – with glimpses of the new season, which looks very exciting.
“When I read that pilot, I thought it was one of the best pilots I’d ever read,” David Harbour, who plays Hopper in the show, said in the featurette. “It felt so pure and beautiful.”
For her part, Winona Ryder, who plays Joyce Byers, added, “I got to watch these kids grow up, which was the biggest gift that this show has given me.”
Summing up the series, producer and frequent director Shawn Levy said, “It’s part of the magic of this show – even as we evolve, even as the storytelling becomes more epic, it’s always anchored in these characters who we love.” (Levy isn’t confirmed to be directing any of these final episodes yet, but it sure looks like he’s going through storyboards in this footage, huh?)
And, teasing this new season, the Duffers remarked that “Stranger Things 5” is the “biggest season in terms of action, in terms of visual effects, in terms of story,” but noted that “ultimately what people want is to see these characters together one last time.”
Maya Hawke, a relatively recent addition to the “Stranger Things” party (she arrived in the summery third season, perhaps still the best season of the show), added, “This is a season about fighting to the bone, even if you don’t know you’re going to win.”
Netflix’s official synopsis reads: “The fall of 1987. Hawkins is scarred by the opening of the Rifts, and our heroes are united by a single goal: find and kill Vecna. But he has vanished — his whereabouts and plans unknown. Complicating their mission, the government has placed the town under military quarantine and intensified its hunt for Eleven, forcing her back into hiding.”
“As the anniversary of Will’s disappearance approaches, so does a heavy, familiar dread,” it continues. “The final battle is looming — and with it, a darkness more powerful and more deadly than anything they’ve faced before. To end this nightmare, they’ll need everyone — the full party — standing together, one last time.”
And if you’re looking to do a final rewatch before the new season, tune in — starting on Sept. 29 — to the “Stranger Things” and Netflix social channels, as well as the Tudum website, for an epic watch-along. Just don’t let Vecna know.
“Stranger Things 5” will release on Netflix across three premiere dates with Volume 1 on Nov. 26 (four episodes), Volume 2 on Christmas (three episodes) and The Finale on New Year’s Eve. Each volume releases at 5 p.m. PT.
