Joe Keery’s Steve Harrington as the hero. Natalia Dyer’s Nancy Wheeler getting to be cool. Gaten Matarazzo’s Dustin Henderson getting to be the friend to everyone. What do you want to see in the final chapter of Stranger Things? Maybe it’s giving Maya Hawke’s Robin Buckley her own story. Whatever it is, it’s almost here. With three years between the past two seasons, it’s hard to recall what happened last time. With the full trailer now here for the fifth and final season, maybe we should pull out the VHS rewinder. How often has the supporting cast’s stories upstaged the story of Finn Wolfhard’s Mike Wheeler, Gaten Matarazzo’s Dustin Henderson, Caleb McLaughlin’s Lucas Sinclair, Noah Schnapp’s Will Byers, and Millie Bobby Brown’s Eleven? Probably every season since the first.
The best character arc? That’s gotta go to Joe Keery’s Steve Harrington, who began as a bad guy but then he grew and brought into the fold a standout sister-in-arms in Season 3 with Maya Hawke’s Robin Buckley, thanks to his job at the mall. The toughest character for the mostly male writers has been Natalia Dyer’s Nancy Wheeler, but when they write her strong, she’s great. Season 1 introduced us to the kids and the town, Steven Spielberg and Stephen King-style. Season 2 gave us Sean Astin as what would become the most beloved character (and Radio Shack worker) of the show, Bob Newby. Season 3 featured the best of the locations: a flashback to the 1980s suburbs with Starcourt Mall. And Season 4 finally developed a worthy antagonist: One, revealed to be Vecna, played by Jamie Campbell Bower. But the hero of last season would be a surprise, accused murderer Joseph Quinn’s Eddie Munson, helping to elevate the season to the best of the bunch.
Key guest stars eliciting plenty of nostalgia have included Paul Reiser, Matthew Modine, Jake Busey, Cary Elwes, Robert Englund, Sean Astin, and of course, series co-leads Winona Ryder and David Harbour leading the way. This year’s throwback featured star? Linda Hamilton. Filmed over twelve months last year, Season 5 will be here soon. Cue the synth on theme song, here’s the trailer for Stranger Things 5:
Stranger Things has a big cast, and other characters will be back, too, like Sadie Sink’s Max Mayfield, Priah Ferguson’s Erica, sister to Lucas, Cara Buono’s Karen Wheeler, Brett Gelman’s Murray Bauman, and Charlie Heaton’s Jonathan Byers. Sorry, no Barb Holland.
It’s hard to believe we’ve known the kids on Stranger Things for a decade now. Look for the first four episodes of Stranger Things Season 5 on Netflix beginning November 26, 2025. The next three episodes arrive on Christmas Day, and the finale arrives on New Year’s Eve.
C.J. Bunce / Editor / borg
