Season 5 of Stranger Things is just around the corner, and the cast of the series recently weighed down on its finale. In a recent interview with TIME, Finn Wolfhard, who portrays Mike Wheeler, compared the ending to The Game of Thrones finale, stating that the Netflix series won’t repeat the fiasco of the HBO series.
I think everyone was pretty worried, honestly. The way that Game of Thrones got torn to shreds in that final season, we’re all walking into this going, ‘We hope to not have that kind of thing happen.’ But then we read the scripts. We knew that it was something special.
Game of Thrones ended with a shortened six-episode final season with a finale so disappointing that it continues to be criticized even now. Often called the worst finale of all time, we sincerely hope Stranger Things Season 5 won’t meet a similar fate.
Stranger Things Creators Shut Down Season 5 Finale Theories
With just months to go for the premiere of the final season, fans and fan forums have been going crazy with theories. However, the series creators, Matt and Ross Duffer, shot down all such theories, denying that they hold any truth.
Many of these theories have been about runtimes, with some fans thinking the finale will be three hours or so long. However, in an interview with Variety, Matt stated:
Every runtime I’ve seen [for the Stranger Things Season 5 finale] posted online is inaccurate.
Moreover, Ross recently took to his Instagram to reveal the actual runtimes of the first four episodes of the fifth season. In the video posted on his account, it can be seen that the premiere episode, The Crawl, will be an hour and 8 minutes long; Episode 2, The Vanishing of…., will be 54 minutes long; Episode 3, The Turnbow Trap, will be an hour and 6 minutes long; and Episode 4, Sorcerer, will be an hour and 23 minutes long.
Finn Wolfhard Gives Exciting Update About Spin-Off Series
It is no secret that a Stranger Things spin-off is in the making, and for quite some while now. However, as Finn Wolfhard (who portrays Mike Wheeler) recently revealed, it won’t be a carbon copy of the original series.
While the cast and crew have remained mum about the spin-off till now, Wolfhard’s little update has generated excitement among fans. In an interview with Variety, he stated:
Like David Lynch’s ‘Twin Peaks.’ Sort of an anthology and different tones but similar universe or same universe. I think set in different places and all tied together through this mythology of the Upside Down. Don’t even talk about Hawkins.
Don’t have any mention of our characters. They were toying around with ideas in case Netflix wanted them. I’m sure they do, and I’m sure it will happen, but there’s nothing official. I think the coolest way, the way that I would do it, there has to be labs everywhere. If there was one in Hawkins, there’s one in Russia. Where else could they be?
His remark would surely make you think: How does he know so much if he doesn’t seem to be involved? Well, as Ross later revealed to Variety, Wolfhard apparently made a wild guess.
Nobody — not Netflix, not any of the producers, not any of the directors, not any of the actors — nobody else has figured out what the spinoff is. Finn figured out, which is pretty remarkable. We’ve mind-melded with this kid a bit.
Apart from the yet-to-be-titled spin-off, an animated series titled Stranger Things: Tales From ‘85 is also in the works. With Netflix expanding Hawkins’ universe, it will be interesting to see how it all plays out. What do you think about the spin-offs: are they worth it, or is Netflix just milking the series?
Stranger Things Season 5 Part 1 drops on November 26, 2025, with Part 2 following on Christmas Day 2025 and Part 3 on New Year’s Eve 2025.
