I Think There Is Going to Be a Major Casualty in ‘Stranger Things 5’ (Actually, Make That 2 Major Casualties)

*Warning: Spoilers ahead*

It’s hard to believe that the Stranger Things season 4 finale premiered on Netflix on July 1, 2022. (Seriously, how has it been that long already?!) And yet, I remember watching the season finale like it was yesterday.

I’ve been a Stranger Things fan ever since the show first arrived on the streaming service in 2016. And as a longtime watcher, I’m so excited to see how the story, which I've followed so closely for almost eight years, will ultimately end.

With Stranger Things 5 officially in production, it was only a matter of time before Netflix released a sneak peek photo or a behind-the-scenes video from the set, giving fans a look at what’s to come in the final season. On July 15, Netflix dropped a BTS teaser for the upcoming installment. Though there was a minute and fifty-eight seconds worth of footage, there were two scenes, in particular, that caught my attention.

Halfway through the video, fans are greeted with a never-before-seen clip of Mike Wheeler’s younger sister, Holly (played by Linda Grovenor), appearing distraught as she stands in their home kitchen with her mouth agape. Then, a clip of Nancy (Natalia Dyer) staring at Mike (Finn Wolfhard) with tears in her eyes flashes across the screen. This leads me to wonder: Are all three siblings grieving the loss of their parents, Ted and Karen Wheeler?

Being that Stranger Things 4 ended with Eleven, Mike, Will and the rest of the Hellfire Club gang confronted with an impending apocalypse after Vecna’s plan comes to fruition, it could only mean one thing: complete mayhem and destruction is heading for Hawkins and its residents. And no one is safe, especially those who are close to the group of teens. ( Dun dun dunnnn ).

Courtesy of Netflix

Ever since the season four finale, fans have been speculating which characters will die in Stranger Things 5 . (Just take one look at this Reddit thread and you’ll see what I’m talking about.) As it turns out, one cast member from the show is not opposed to a high casualty rate. Stranger Things star Gaten Matarazzo teased in a February 2024 interview with Collider that he wants the stakes to be higher in season five and revealed that the writers shouldn't be afraid to “kill more people.”

When asked who he thinks will die in the final season, Matarazzo said, “I’m going to go for myself,” he said. "Hey, why not? I mean, hope towards the end if it's going to happen. I want to be in it as much as I can. I want to hang out with my buds as much as I can.” (Since Dustin is one of my fave characters in the series, I hope that this is not true—but hey, you never know.)

For now, Stranger Things 5 is expected to premiere sometime in 2025 . But until then, I’ll be keeping my eyes peeled for more updates about the final installment (and perusing Reddit for more Stranger Things fan theories , of course.)

‘Stranger Things 5’ Has Officially Started Production—Here’s Everything We Know About the Release Date, Cast & More

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