STRANGER THINGS gets super-sized Season 4 release and confirmation of ending

Netflix has released some info about the future of Stranger Things, its 1980s nostalgia horror-SF show. Season 4 will be released in two parts in May and July. Season 5 has been greenlit and will be the final season of the show, although creators the Duffer Brothers have left the door open for spin-offs and more shows set in the same universe.

The show debuted in 2016, rapidly becoming the streamer's signature series (especially after original headliners Orange is the New Black and House of Cards concluded). The show aired additional seasons in 2017 and 2019, which were well-received. However, production of Season 4 was interrupted by the COVID19 pandemic, delaying transmission until this year. The Duffer Brothers have said since the beginning that the show will have a four or five-season arc, and have now confirmed that the show will end with Season 5.

The nine-episode Season 4 will be divided into two "volumes." The first batch of episodes will be released on 27 May this year and the second batch on 1 July. The episodes will be significantly longer than the previous seasons, with today's announcement confirming that the season will be almost twice as long as Season 3, suggesting episodes averaging around 90 minutes in length. Releasing the season in two batches will allow viewers to absorb the huge amount of material in a more leisurely fashion, as well as building up discussion and excitement in-between the two "volumes." However, industry watchers will be wondering if this marks Netflix exploring a move away from their popular-but-expensive binge-release format, following the batch-release system previously used for their mega-hit Arcane (which was released in three batches of three episodes at weekly intervals). Other streaming services, including Amazon, Apple TV+ and Disney+, have abandoned the idea in favour of a weekly release schedule which generates more coverage and attention.

The conclusion of Stranger Things comes at a point where Netflix has been successful in launching potential successor headline shows, such as Bridgerton, Squid Game and Arcane.