Credit: NetflixStranger Things is not only one of the most popular shows on Netflix, it’s one of the most popular shows in the world. Created by the Duffer Brothers, Season 1 premiered in 2016 and has continued to captivate fans for seven years. With the fifth and final season finally in development after production was halted this year due to the Hollywood strikes, rumors and speculation have started to fly about what could be in store to end the stories of the characters we’ve come to know and love. According to the Duffer Brothers, at least one major fan theory is completely wrong.
A mix of science fiction and horror with a lot of ’80s nostalgia, Stranger Things takes place in a fictional town called Hawkins, Indiana. It follows the story of a group of kids learning about the existence of a dangerous and hostile alternate dimension, the Upside Down, with Eleven, a young girl with mental powers, the only one who can truly save them. While the show focuses on the horror and action aspects, it’s also a great show of friendship, acceptance, understanding, and the will to fight.
It was the breakout show for several of its stars, including Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven, Noah Schnapp as Will Byers, Finn Wolfhard as Mike Wheeler, and Gaten Matarazzo as Dustin Henderson. Other stars include Joe Keery, Natalia Dyer, Sadie Sink, Maya Hawke, Dacre Montgomery, David Harbour, and Winona Ryder. Over the years, Stranger Things has become so popular, it’s been featured at Universal Resort’s Halloween Horror Nights three separate times and now has a spinoff in the form of a Broadway production as well as several novels, comic books, and merchandise.
One of the biggest aspects in the game is the focus on Dungeons & Dragons, a real-life roleplaying game that involves character and world building as well as creatures and magic, and is one of the biggest table-top games in the world. The first season features it heavily, with the group using it to help them save Will from the Upside Down. In the most recent fourth season, it again becomes a central plot point, with newcomer character Eddie Munson (played by Joseph Quinn) leading a D&D group at the high school. With the show taking place in the ’80s, the fourth season emphasized the stigma that the game once had, including its supposed connection to Satanism, delinquency, and witchcraft.
Considering the emphasis on the roleplaying game, and the fact that even the characters themselves resemble D&D roles, one of the most popular fan theories about how the final season would end was a reveal that the entire show was just a Dungeons & Dragons campaign, meaning that none of it had ever been real. This theory has been widely spread and accepted for years, going as far back as the show’s debut, with explanations, “proof,” and connections being used to confirm the theory.
However, as reported by IGN, at the recent premier of the Broadway show, Stranger Things: The First Shadow, the Duffer Brothers addressed the theory, dashing the hopes and theories of millions. “That would be the equivalent of, ‘That’s all a dream.’ No, I assure you that is not how we’re going to end the show,” Ross Duffer explained. Although no other hints or teases were given, the confirmation has sent fans back to the drawing board to speculate about what the fifth season might entail and how the entire story may come to an end.
On the one hand, kudos to the Duffers for not taking the easy way out in the form of a campaign reveal or “dream sequence.” On the other hand, we’ll never forgive them for Barb or Bob, now that their deaths are officially official. With writing and planning for the fifth season underway, it’s unclear when fans can expect the season finale to be released, although filming is expected to begin early next year. Inside the Magic will follow updates closely.
What is your theory on how Stranger Things will come to an end? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!