Credit: NetflixIt would hardly be a lie to say that Stranger Things Season 5 is drawing closer now that the Duffer brothers are back in the writer’s room, but the fifth and final season in the hit Netflix television series is still likely a few years from release.
Either way, the fact that production is now underway again has given fans hope after all the recent delays.
Related: ‘Stranger Things’ Star Discusses Character Death Ahead of Season 5 Release
In the meantime, we still have Stranger Things seasons 1 — 4 on the streaming service, which might be worth a rewatch (or two) to see if there are any clues about how things will pan out for our Hawkins heroes — and villains — in their final moments.
There’s also the stage play Stranger Things: The First Shadow (2023), which opens in London’s Phoenix Theater on December 14 and acts as a prequel to the Netflix series, offering fans more insight about Season 4 protagonist Henry Creel/One/Vecna.
Related: First Part of ‘Stranger Things’ Season 5 Coming Next Month
Once The First Shadow arrives, the anticipation for Season 5 will likely be even higher. After all, writer Kate Trefry has said that while the stage play isn’t required viewing, it will give fans “a deeper understanding” of Season 5 by the time it’s released on Netflix.
Matt Duffer also described The First Shadow as “a mega episode.” Meanwhile, a number of Stranger Things actors have talked about Season 5, doing their best to keep specifics under wraps. David Harbour recently reassured fans that it will be a definitive ending to the series.
Related: ‘Stranger Things’ Reveals First Look at Season 5’s Chapter 1
What many fans are eager to know is what will happen to characters they’ve grown to love since the show first arrived on the platform in 2016.
Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown), Dustin Henderson (Gaten Matarazzo), Mike Wheeler (Finn Wolfhard), Will Byers (Noah Schnapp), Lucas Sinclair (Caleb McLaughlin), Steve Harrington (Joe Keery), Robin Buckley (Maya Hawke), Joyce Byers (Winona Ryder), Jim Hopper (David Harbour), Nancy Wheeler (Natalia Dyer), Jonathan Byers (Charlie Heaton), Murray Bauman (Brett Gelman), and May Mayfield (Sadie Sink). What will become of all these characters? Who will survive? All of them? Half of them?
Related: ‘Stranger Things’ Is Temporarily Replacing Its Main Character Lineup
If there’s one thing we can trust the Duffer brothers not to do, it’s to kill off characters for the sake of cheap thrills. In the four seasons of the show so far, not a single lead character has been killed off, unless we’re talking about the likes of Bob Newby (Sean Astin) and Eddie Munson (Joseph Quinn), each of whom was killed in the same season they were introduced.
But now that Hawkins has been literally torn down the middle by Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower), and with the Upside Down starting to bleed through, all bets are off. This is especially true in the case of Max Mayfield, who, in the Season 4 finale, “Chapter Nine: The Piggyback,” became the dark wizard’s latest victim — well, sort of.
Related: ‘Stranger Things’ Shares Teaser for First Part of Season 5 Ahead of December Release
Throughout Season 4, Vecna brutally dispatches a number of Hawkins teens by singling them out telepathically (honing in on particularly troubled individuals, which is why Max has her happy song, Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill,” on loop as a distraction), and then telekinetically lifting them into the air where he snaps all of their limbs and drains them of all life. And in the finale, he manages to get his claws on poor Max.
Fortunately, Eleven comes to her rescue and defeats Vecna, but it all seems a little too late as Max falls into a coma. Following her (temporary) victory over Vecna, Eleven desperately searches for Max’s “consciousness” — her unconscious body is in the hospital — in the featureless black void where she’s usually able to connect with the minds of others, but is distraught to learn that she’s nowhere to be found.
Related: ‘Stranger Things’ Could Recast Eleven This Year
Max, it seems, is either in a supernatural coma, or she’s already dead, and her body is simply still breathing.
Should the former be the case, it’s possible Eleven, and the rest of the gang, will find a way to reconnect Max’s mind with her body (will the famous song “Where is My Mind?” become Season 5’s answer to Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill”?). But if we’re staring down the barrel of the latter scenario, things are looking incredibly grim for Max Mayfield.
Related: ‘Stranger Things’ Is Recasting Three of Its Main Characters
With Season 5 out of sight, it’s hard to tell what will actually happen to Max, and naturally, the actors are keeping things close to their chest. But there are some hints peppered throughout Season 4 that may hint at Max’s fate, some of them hopeful, others not so much.
Stranger Things Season 4 Clues
Bad — “Running Up That Hill”
The song “Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)” by Kate Bush is the first clue. Though the iconic musician has explained that the song addresses the lack of understanding between men and women, within the context of Stranger Things, it may point more towards exchanging places in terms of a great sacrifice (hence “A Deal With God”). As such, Max may have ultimately sacrificed her life for the greater good.
Good — Stranger Things May Introduce Time Travel
Anyone unlucky enough to be targeted by Vecna doesn’t just have crippling fear to contend with — they’re also forced to literally confront the few hours or minutes they have left in the form of a dusty old grandfather clock with ominous ticks and tocks.
Time plays a huge role in Season 4, but it’s said to have even more importance in The First Shadow, which is also heavily implied in the trailer. And as the stage play ties into the series, will the fifth and final season introduce time travel?
Check out the trailer for The First Shadow below:
It sounds a bit too far-fetched, but this is also heavily suggested in Season 4 through a ton of imagery, but more so when it’s revealed that the Upside Down is “stuck in the past.” Will Eleven use her abilities to reverse time and save Max? Only time will tell.
Bad — The Cemetery
There’s a ton of symbolism peppered throughout the fourth season, particularly in scenes involving Max. One in particular sees her visiting the grave of her dead brother Billy Hargrove (Dacre Montgomery), who was killed by the Shadow Monster in Season 3.
Good: Eleven’s Powers
Perhaps the biggest clue of all is the gut-wrenching scene in which Eleven can’t locate Max using her telepathic abilities, which suggests that Max is indeed dead but that her body is still alive.
That said, if Max’s mind is lost somewhere in the Upside Down or somewhere between realities, it’s likely Eleven — who has become stronger with each season — will try to find her and restore her mind somehow. Stranger things have happened.
Bad — Max Isn’t an Original Stranger Things Character
Though we’ve already explained that Stranger Things has so far avoided killing any original characters, it’s worth pointing out that Max Mayfield isn’t one of them, as she was introduced in Season 2. This could give her much less plot armor against Vecna.
Stranger Things is, of course, a science fiction franchise, and though we see plenty of “miracles” throughout the show, we’re just not convinced Max is going to be able to pull through after her deadly encounter with Vecna. That said, her friends won’t give up without a fight.
If the epic Season 4 finale proves anything, it’s that these characters are incredibly resilient. Eleven is a teenage girl who goes up against Vecna in a hell dimension; a starved and frozen-to-the-bones Jim Hopper goes toe to toe with a Demogorgon; Eddie Munson sacrifices himself to a horde of monstrous bats to create a distraction; and Nancy Wheeler becomes the ultimate final girl when she faces off against Vecna in his corporeal form.
Stranger Things: The First Shadow
Per the official website, here’s the synopsis for The First Shadow:
BEFORE THE WORLD TURNED UPSIDE DOWN…
Hawkins, 1959: a regular town with regular worries. Young Jim Hopper’s car won’t start, Bob Newby’s sister won’t take his radio show seriously and Joyce Maldonado just wants to graduate and get the hell out of town.
When new student Henry Creel arrives, his family finds that a fresh start isn’t so easy… and the shadows of the past have a very long reach.
Brought to life by a multi-award-winning creative team, who take theatrical storytelling and stagecraft to a whole new dimension, this gripping new adventure will take you right back to the beginning of the Stranger Things story — and may hold the key to the end.
Stranger Things Season 1 — 4
Per Netflix, here’s the official synopsis for Stranger Things Season 4:
It’s been six months since the Battle of Starcourt, which brought terror and destruction to Hawkins. Struggling with the aftermath, our group of friends are separated for the first time – and navigating the complexities of high school hasn’t made things any easier. In this most vulnerable time, a new and horrifying supernatural threat surfaces, presenting a gruesome mystery that, if solved, might finally put an end to the horrors of the Upside Down.
Season 4 stars Joe Keery (Steve Harrington), Winona Ryder (Joyce Byers), David Harbour (Jim Hopper), Finn Wolfhard (Mike Wheeler), Millie Bobby Brown (Eleven/Jane Hopper), Gaten Matarazzo (Dustin Henderson), Joseph Quinn (Eddie Munson), Paul Reiser (Dr. Sam Owens), Caleb McLaughlin (Lucas Sinclair), Natalia Dyer (Nancy Wheeler), Matthew Modine (Papa/Martin Brenner), Maya Hawke (Robin Buckley), Charlie Heaton (Jonathan Byers), Sadie Sink (Max Mayfield), Noah Schnapp (Will Byers), and Jamie Campbell Bower (Vecna/One/Henry Creel).
Stranger Things seasons 1 — 4 are streaming on Netflix.
The First Shadow will officially open in London’s Phoenix Theater on December 14, 2023.
What do you think will happen to Max in Stranger Things Season 5? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!