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Cathal Gunning
Published 3 minutes ago
Cathal Gunning has been writing about movies, television, culture, and politics online and in print since 2017. He worked as a Senior Editor in Adbusters Media Foundation from 2018-2019 and wrote for WhatCulture in early 2020. He has been a Senior Features Writer for ScreenRant since 2020.
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Shortly before the arrival of season 5, Stranger Things landed all four of its earlier seasons in the Netflix Top 10 simultaneously and proved that the streaming service’s viral re-watch campaign paid off. Stranger Things has achieved the seemingly impossible, as the show has become the first series to get four seasons in the Netflix top ten at once.
The long wait between seasons and the decision to release Part 1 on Thanksgiving were both heavily criticized, but this success proves that the strategy has already worked. The hype is bigger than ever for Stranger Things season 5, as evidenced by the fact that seasons 1, 2, 3, and 4 are all trending worldwide on the streaming service.
There was a staggering three-year wait between the end of Stranger Things season 4 back in May 2022 and the arrival of season 5 part 1 in November 2025. As such, some critics thought that the show would lose the interest of viewers, as it has been nine long years since season 1 was first released in July 2016.
Stranger Things Season 5 Waiting Over 3 Years Between Seasons Paid Off
Will Byers looking angry and screaming in Stranger Things season 5
However, the opposite appears to have happened. Much like another one of Netflix’s most popular shows, Wednesday, Stranger Things seems to have only built hype the longer the show has been absent from screens. Much like Wednesday season 2 was an even bigger hit than its predecessor, Stranger Things season 5 is now set to be the show’s biggest release ever.
Given the high price tag on the series and its massive fan base, there is no doubt that Stranger Things season 5 was always going to be a major release for Netflix. Add in the fact that it is the final outing of the series, even if the upcoming Stranger Things spinoff complicates this, and the hype grew even bigger.
However, it was still undeniably risky for Netflix to wait over three years between outings. For one thing, the cast of Stranger Things is mostly playing teenage characters, and many of them are now in their early 20s thanks to the long wait between seasons. The actors playing Jonathan, Nancy, and Steve, characters in their late teens, are in their 30s.
This is such a big issue that next year’s spinoff Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 even recast the main characters to get around the issue. However, season 5’s creators remained undaunted by the reality of time passing and added a time jump at the beginning of the season to explain away the cast’s changing faces.
Stranger Things Season 5's Thanksgiving Release Clearly Won't Hurt Its Performance
Holly and Karen in Stranger Things season 5©Netflix / Courtesy Everett Collection
Of course, a show this massive was never going to have just one controversy plaguing its biggest release ever. Stranger Things season 5’s release schedule strategy was also criticized by some fans online when it was first announced that season 5, part 1 would be released on Thanksgiving, while season 5, part 2 would arrive on Christmas Day.
Season 5, part 3, will be released on New Year’s Eve, meaning the show’s creators just about managed to fulfill their promise of releasing the entire series in 2025. The decision to release all three outings on major holidays might seem logical, since viewers are likely to be at home and searching for something to watch on streaming services.
However, this approach is also a double-edged sword. Viewers are at home celebrating the holidays with family, meaning they may not have the spare time or interest in watching a highly anticipated TV show. Furthermore, Stranger Things season 5, part 1 will be released in one four-episode drop, meaning viewers need time to binge the entire half-season while celebrating Thanksgiving.
There is also the question of region specificity. While Netflix was deciding the future of Stranger Things, it isn’t clear if the creators of the series considered the fact that Thanksgiving isn’t a global holiday, unlike Christmas and New Year’s Eve. Thanksgiving isn’t celebrated outside America, meaning viewers in other countries won’t necessarily have time to watch the show.
Famously, Thanksgiving episodes aren’t well-timed for network TV scheduling thanks to mid-season hiatuses. Numerous shows have broken this tradition by producing many Thanksgiving episodes, notably Friends and Bob’s Burgers, but the holiday receives less attention than Christmas and Halloween precisely because it isn’t an international institution and is not celebrated across the world.
Stranger Things Season 5's Release Strategy Could Still Falter
Stranger Things season 4’s Charlie Heaton as Jonathan Byers, Winona Ryder as Joyce Byers, Millie Bobby as Brown Eleven, Noah Schnapp as Will Byers, David Harbour as Jim Hopper, Natalia Dyer as Nancy Wheeler and Finn Wolfhard as Mike WheelerImage via Netflix
In contrast, both Christmas and New Year’s Eve are far bigger holidays. While this would seemingly bode well for Stranger Things season 5’s release, as it means more viewers are more likely to be at home, this isn’t a surefire success strategy.
After all, viewers are even more likely to be spending time with family instead of watching content on a streaming service on Christmas Day. Die-hard fans will be sure to tune in the moment that season 5, part 2 drops, but casual viewers are less likely to check out the new Stranger Things episodes the moment they arrive.
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10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Like Follow Followed TV-14 Drama Mystery Horror Science Fiction Release Date 2016 - 2025-00-00 Network Netflix Showrunner Matt Duffer, Ross Duffer Directors Matt Duffer, Ross Duffer, Andrew Stanton, Frank Darabont, Nimród Antal, Uta Briesewitz Writers Kate Trefry, Jessie Nickson-Lopez, Jessica Mecklenburg, Alison Tatlock
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Eleven looking into an opening of the Upside Down with pink light in Stranger Things season 1
Jim Hopper (David Harbour) grabbing Jonathan's (Charlie Heaton) shoulders in Stranger Things season 1©Netflix/Courtesy Everett Collection
Eleven with cables all over her head in Stranger Things season 4
Vecna looking towards Will in the trailer for Stranger Things season 5 (2025)
Max and Eleven in Stranger ThingsNetflix
Stranger Things season 2, episode 2 "Trick or Treat, Freak".MovieStillsDB
The Upside Down in Stranger Things season 5Courtesy of Netflix Close
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Millie Bobby Brown
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Do you think the long wait between Stranger Things seasons was worth it for the increased hype and viewership numbers?
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3 minutes ago
Some fans may feel the three-year gap was too long and that the cast aged too much, while others believe the anticipation made the season 5 premiere even more exciting. The show's massive viewership numbers suggest the wait paid off, but it's debatable if the trade-off was worth it for the story and characters.
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