Netflix has reversed course on its plan to bring the Stranger Things series finale to theaters. The streamer announced on Thursday that the final episode will get a limited two-day run in more than 350 theaters across the US and Canada.
Screenings of the finale of the wildly popular coming-of-age sci-fi series will be timed to its global Netflix debut, beginning December 31st at 5:00 p.m. PT and running through January 1st, 2026.
“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,” series creators Matt and Ross Duffer said in a statement. “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.”
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Information about ticketing and theater locations will be announced at a later date.
Earlier this month, Netflix chief creative officer Bela Bajaria dismissed the idea of a theatrical release for the Stranger Things finale in an interview with Variety. “A lot of people — a lot, a lot, a lot of people — have watched Stranger Things on Netflix,” she said. “It has not suffered from lack of conversation or community or sharing or fandom. I think releasing it on Netflix is giving the fans what they want.”
However, The Hollywood Reporter cites a source at Netflix who says the deal to bring Stranger Things to theaters has “been in the works for some time, contrary to any speculation that would suggest otherwise.”
The news comes shortly after the Duffer Brothers signed a four-year exclusive deal with Paramount, which will take effect once their Netflix contract expires next year. In that same Variety interview, Matt Duffer explained that the “biggest draw” for the move was “to be able to do something theatrical, which is not something Netflix does.”
According to the official description, Season 5 of Stranger Things finds the town of Hawkins “scarred by the opening of the Rifts, and our heroes are united by a single goal: find and kill Vecna. But he has vanished — his whereabouts and plans unknown. 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.”
In terms of release schedule, Netflix will continue its recent trend of multi-part rollouts by splitting the fifth and final season into three parts. Volume 1 premieres on November 26th, followed by Volume 2 on December 25th, and the series finale on December 31st.