“At long last, we can begin.”
These words open the first official trailer for the long-awaited final season of “Stranger Things,” released by Netflix on Thursday, which uses Queen’s “Who Wants to Live Forever” as its soundtrack.
The “Stranger Things” Season 5 trailer shows the residents of Hawkins, Indiana, quarantined in their own town after the world-shattering events from the finale of Season 4. As the Hawkins gang endeavor to stop the horrors of the Upside Down one last time, the villainous Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower) too makes an attempt to finish things once and for all — with Vecna again seeking the once-abducted Will Byers (Noah Schnapp) to carry out his plan.
“We’re really starting to lose it, being stuck in here with no end in sight,” Finn Wolfhard’s Mike says in the trailer, with an epic version of Queen’s “Who Wants to Live Forever” playing in the background. “Maybe tonight is our break. We find Vecna, we end this one and for all. Together.” You can watch the full trailer below.
The “Stranger Things” finale has been a long time coming. Fans of the Duffer brothers‘ phenomenon have made repeated mention over the years of the series’ production timeline, with the big-budget, effects-heavy show releasing only five season from 2016 to 2025. The final two seasons of “Stranger Things” had the biggest gap, with more than three years passing between the finale of Season 4 and the premiere of Season 5. That’s a long wait following the cliffhanger ending of Season 4.
“I think what’s unique about this season is that it starts a little bit in chaos because our heroes ultimately lost at the end of Season 4,” said series co-creator Ross Duffer in a statement. “We usually set up their normal life and how they’re going about school, and then we introduce the supernatural element. But in this case, this season is sprinting from the start.”
“They’re not experiencing normal life. Nothing in Hawkins is normal anymore…their movement is restricted, and there are Big Brother cameras everywhere,” co-creator Matt Duffer said in a statement. “So not only are they active — their everyday, normal lives are anything but.”
The trailer shows some epic action from the acclaimed show’s final season, with Vecna launching a full-scale attack on the surface world with his creatures from the Upside Down. A slew of returning characters get the spotlight — among them, Mike, Will, Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown), Hopper (David Harbour), Joyce (Winona Ryder), Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo), Lucas (Caleb McLaughlin), Steve (Joe Keery), Nancy (Natalia Dyer), Jonathan (Charlie Heaton) and many more. It also teases a set of new characters to the series — primarily, Linda Hamilton’s Dr. Kay. Sorry, Joseph Quinn fans, but don’t expect Eddie Munson to join the returning crew.
The first volume of “Stranger Things 5” premieres on Netflix Nov. 26 at 5 p.m. PT, with the second volume premiering on Christmas Day at the same time. The final episode of the series will premiere at 5 p.m. PT on New Year’s Eve. In a special deal between Netflix and theaters, fans can also watch the finale in theaters.
