Stranger Things star recalls reading the final episode with his cast mates for the very first time: "[It] was much more emotional than I thought it was going to be"

A group of kids gathered around a table during the Netflix show Stranger Things.
(Image credit: Netflix)

If you thought you were bummed that the next season of Stranger Things is set to be its last, try being a cast member.

In a new interview with Collider, Finn Wolfhard, who plays Mike Wheeler on the hit Netflix show, recalled how he and his co-stars "cold read" the final episode for the very first time as a group and, well, basically couldn't keep it together. Not a surprising reaction, really, given that they've been with these characters for the last ten years...

"I read it with the cast and it was unbelievably emotional. We'd never read it before, so this was the first time we were all reading everything, and so it [was] very overwhelming and really special," he told the publication. "It was definitely one of those things that was much more emotional than I thought it was going to be. But I'm really happy about it and excited for it to come out."

Wolfhard went on to say that Stranger Things season 5 is set to follow in its predecessor's footsteps, with a bunch of episodes that boast a feature-length runtime. "I guess they are like little micro-movies," he claimed, before adding: "But there are some episodes that are still 40 minutes, 45 mins."

As it stands, next to nothing is known about what Mike, Eleven, Will, and co will be getting up to when they return to our screens, but we do know that they'll be facing off against Vecna once again in the new episodes. After season 4 revealed that Henry Creel (Jamie Campbell-Bower) was behind the Hawkins murders and the creation of the Mind Flayer, the Upside Down looked to be leaking into the real world... With Max in a coma and Eddie (Joseph Quinn) having sacrificed himself, can our favorite Dungeons & Dragons-playing nerds stop him before it's too late?

Stranger Things season 5 is expected to air in late 2025. Rumor has it that the final chapter will be split in two, with the first landing in October before the second drops in November. While we wait, check out our picks of the best Netflix shows for some viewing inspiration.

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Amy West

I am an Entertainment Writer here at 12DOVE, covering all things TV and film across our Total Film and SFX sections. Elsewhere, my words have been published by the likes of Digital Spy, SciFiNow, PinkNews, FANDOM, Radio Times, and Total Film magazine.