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Had things gone according to plan and the AMPTP offered the WGA and SAG unions deals they could accept, the cast and crew of Stranger Things season 5 would be at least a few months into production on the final season of Stranger Things. But, that has not happened. It’s September 2023, and the cast and crew of the Netflix original series is waiting to start production.
While Stranger Things season 4 was delayed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, it looks like we’re in the middle of another delay for Stranger Things season 5.
On May 6, 2023, the Duffer Brothers revealed production on Stranger Things season 5 will not begin until the WGA strike is over. In July, the actors went on strike. And, as of Sept. 5, the AMPTP has not offered a better deal to the unions. Negotiations have reportedly been few and far between.
This summer, Netflix also hosted their annual TUDUM event on June 17 and announced a super exciting cast addition for season 5, so it’s not all bad news. We also got a director update after that.
More recently, in August and September, we’ve heard a few updates from Stranger Things cast members, David Harbour and Joe Keery. Each commented on the end of Stranger Things. Harbour also shared an update on the timeline for production in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter.
There’s also rumors on Twitter about the Stranger Things season 5 sets being built. We haven’t been able to verify the rumors, but it sounds like work, without the writers and actors, is still happening.
Stranger Things was officially the biggest Netflix show of 2022. Stranger Things season 4 was released in two parts during the summer of 2022, and since then, fans have been waiting for any big announcements from the Stranger Things team about the fifth season.
It’s going to be a while until season 5 hits Netflix, but because there’s so much information flying around, we created this page for fans to revisit to find out the latest updates about the Stranger Things season 5 release, cast, episodes, and more.
The latest update was made on Tuesday, Sept. 5, 2023. FanSided Entertainment’s Natalie Zamora and Bryce Olin contributed to this report.
Stranger Things season 5 delayed
In May 2023, the Duffer Brothers shared on Twitter that Stranger Things season 5 will not start filming until the writers’ strike is over. Stranger Things season 5 filming was reported to be starting in May or June.
In the last few months, the timeline for filming Stranger Things season 5 has been revealed.
David Harbour, who stars as Jim Hopper in the Netflix series, just revealed when production starts on the new season, and it’s in line with what we’ve heard from other cast members, Noah Schnapp and Finn Wolfhard. Harbour told Collider he starts filming in June 2023, while Schnapp mentioned he starts filming in May. Harbour also revealed that he got a bunch of emails from Netflix telling him to zip it and stop talking about season 5.
Unfortunately, that May or June start date could not happen because of the writers’ strike.
The actors’ strike will also delay Stranger Things season 5
More recently in July, the actors also began their strike. At the time of this writing, both the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and the Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) are both on strike against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) after not being able to come to an agreement on their updated contracts.
This means that neither the writers nor actors in the respective unions mentioned can work with the AMPTP, which includes major studios like Netflix. So even if the writers’ strike concludes and the Stranger Things writing room can get back to working on season 5, the actors will not be able to film it if their strike is still happening.
There’s no telling how long the writers’ or actors’ strike will go on, but one would have to hope that if the AMPTP is compromising with one, they’ll do it with the other as well. The studios can’t make money if the writers and actors can’t work. For many reasons, TV and movie fans like us are hoping the studios budge soon.
Stranger Things season 5 is the last season
Stranger Things season 5 is definitely happening, but the only sad news is that it will mark the final season of the sci-fi phenomenon. In Feb. 2022, Netflix officially renewed the series for a fifth season, sharing a letter from the Duffer Brothers on social media. In the letter, the duo shared the exciting news about the Stranger Things season 4 release date but also revealed the show is coming to an end. Check out the photo below.
David Harbour told Discussing Film that he knows it is time for Stranger Things to end.
What’s funny is when I started the show, I never ever wanted it to end. That’s why I love the show. I think it’s a great show, even if I wasn’t in it. Now we’re almost nine years from filming the first season, and I think it is time for it to end. But it is, of course, very bittersweet. You know, there’s a sadness there. But also, we’ve all grown up. It is time for us to leave that nest and try other things and different projects. And to let the Duffer Brothers try different things as well. I mean, those guys are so talented. I want to see what they come up with next. So it is bittersweet, but it’s definitely time.
Stranger Things fans might not agree, but that’s what is happening.
Recently, Joe Keery shared his feelings on Stranger Things season 5 being the final season of the series in an interview with Women’s Wear Daily. The interview took place before the SAG strike started in July 2023.
Here’s what he told WWD:
“It does feel like it’s time. It won’t be easy for it to end. I mean, I owe my whole career to being on that show and all the opportunities that I had since are because of that show. So it’s very convoluted. There’s a sense of relief, there’s a sense of sadness. I guess my goal is to just really soak it up as much as I can while we’re doing it, and not take any of it for granted because it’s been an amazing ride with such great people. And then once it’s done, move forward and try to just hold on to the joy that we had when we were making it….Everything has a beginning and the middle and an end. It’ll be nice to have the end of this too.”
Is there Stranger Things season 5 release date yet?
As of September 2023, we do not have the Stranger Things season 5 release date. There are lots of fake release dates online, so don’t get tricked! So, let’s get into what we do know about when we can expect the final installment.
The Duffers told Variety in May 2022 that the gap between season 4 and season 5 shouldn’t be as long as the gap between season 3 and season 4:
“Don’t hold us to it, but the gap should be quite a bit shorter this time, due to the fact that we already have an initial outline, and we can’t imagine there will be another six-month forced hiatus.”
But of course, they said that before the writers’ and actors’ strikes began.
Thanks to the stars of the show, we figured out when filming was supposed to start. The writers had been hard at work on season 5 since about a month after the release of season 4 part 2. We have to assume that the outline is done, but we know from previous seasons the Duffers like to write as they go. We have to assume that will happen for season 5 as well.
Harbour also told The Hollywood Reporter that Stranger Things season 5 will take about a year to film. Obviously, that’s tough news for fans, and we’ll explain why. Here’s Harbour’s full quote from Harbour:
“There will be a little bit of a push difference, but Stranger Things 5 will shoot for a year. So Thunderbolts will have to live somewhere within that, but the whole thing is crazy speculation at this point.”
Until the AMPTP offers the writers and actors a deal they can accept, Stranger Things season 5 will be delayed. We had a feeling the Duffers would not cross the picket line. They revealed in the past that they are constantly writing and rewriting during the production schedule, and they’re not going to work until the AMPTP offers a deal.
House of the Dragon and The Rings of Power are still filming through the strike without showrunners and writers on set, according to reports. Stranger Things is a different animal, though. As the Duffers mentioned, when the AMPTP offers a “fair deal,” they’ll get to work on season 5. And now that the actors are also striking, that makes the release window a bit more complicated to predict.
As more and more time goes on, it’s looking likely that we won’t be getting Stranger Things season 5 until sometime in 2025. Trust us, it hurts us, too!
Even if production started in September and the strikes ended, filming would not finish until the fall of 2024. There’s no way to turn the season around for release on Netflix before the year ends. So, right now, it’s almost guaranteed Stranger Things season 5 is coming to Netflix in 2025 at the very earliest.
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