Netflix's Stranger Things finale to premiere in theaters, confirms Duffer Brothers

Stranger Things Season 5 is the last instalment in the franchise

Netflix has reversed its earlier plan not to release the Stranger Things series finale in theatres. The streamer revealed on Thursday that the eagerly awaited full-length finale to the popular sci-fi film about coming of age will actually be released in theatres.

Stranger Things Season 5 finale will be screened in over 350 theatres across the United States and Canada beginning on December 31 at 5 p.m. PT, coinciding with the Netflix global premiere, and will continue until January 1, 2026.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, The Duffer Brothers said in an official statement, “We’re beyond excited that fans will have the chance to experience the final episode of Stranger Things in theaters — it’s something we’ve dreamed about for years, and we’re so grateful to Ted, Bela and everyone at Netflix for making it happen.”

The statement added, “Getting to see it on the big screen, with incredible sound, picture and a room full of fans, feels like the perfect — dare we say bitchin’ — way to celebrate the end of this adventure.”

About Stranger Things Season 5 finale:

Stranger Things' fifth and final season will air in three instalments, each of which will fall on a major holiday in the United States: Thanksgiving week will see the release of the first four episodes on November 26. Three more episodes will follow on Christmas Eve (Dec. 24), and the single-episode finale will air on New Year's Eve.

Stranger Things Season 5 is set in the fall of 1987 and explores Hawkins as the city is scarred by the opening of the Rifts. However, the series heroes are united by a single goal: find and kill Vecna. But he has vanished — his whereabouts and plans unknown.

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The official plot continues, “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. 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.”