It’s no secret that Stranger Things Season 5 has taken a long time to make. Now, the Duffer brothers are opening up about their “regrets” over the lengthy production and promising it will be worth it in the end.
Stranger Things is a cornerstone of the Netflix brand, having risen as one of the streaming service’s most popular titles since its debut in 2016. With each new chapter it’s continued to grow, with Season 4 now the third most-watched English-language Netflix series of all time (following Wednesday and Adolescence).
But that was in 2022. A lot’s happened since then, with production delays making the gap between Seasons 4 and 5 feel like a lifetime.
The wait is nearly over, with Part 1 set to drop on Netflix in November. Creators Matt and Ross Duffer are getting ready to close the chapter for good and usher in a new era, having signed a four-year deal with Paramount.
Duffer brothers open up about Stranger Things Season 5 delay
In a new interview with Variety, the Duffer brothers opened up about their “regrets” over the fact that they’ve been focused on Stranger Things for the past decade. The report also gives further insight into the Season 5 delays, stating that aside from the pandemic and Hollywood strikes, “the Duffers admit their immersion was a problem of their own making”.
Including the finale, the Duffers will have directed 24 out of 42 episodes, with Variety stating, “They were determined to direct as much of the show as possible – almost unheard of for showrunners working in genre TV.”
But this was a personal choice, with the brothers being inspired by the likes of Michael Mann, Peter Weir, and David Fincher, who Matt said “tend to be obsessive.”
“Part of me regrets not having been able to tell more different stories over the course of 10 years. Sometimes I wonder about that – because it ate up our entire 30s. I wish we had gotten it done a little faster, but it is what it is,” he continued.
Ross added, “But when we started, it was very early Netflix. And I don’t know how many more opportunities there are going to be to tell stories of this length on that size canvas. So whenever I have the regrets that Matt was saying, I’m excited that we were able to take advantage of this very specific period of time in the industry.”
Matt also admitted it was “our choice” to make the timeline as long as it is. “We could have jumped ship and done movies, and we elected not to – and I’m glad we didn’t,” he said. “We finished telling this story, and luckily we weren’t too old when we started it, so we’re OK. I mean, Ridley Scott didn’t start making movies until he was in his 40s.”
The creators are hoping the payoff will be worth it, something Stranger Things executive producer Shawn Levy is confident about. “They have had their hearts broken by shows that they loved that failed fans in the end,” he said. “They did not want, and do not want, and refuse to be one of those shows.”
Ross said that Season 5 “doesn’t feel like we dropped a storyline – it all connects.” And Matt added, “We do every last remaining thing we wanted to do with the Demogorgons and Mind Flayer and Vecna and the Upside Down and Hawkins and these characters. This is a complete story. It’s done.”
Stranger Things Season 5 Part 1 arrives on Netflix on November 26, 2025, followed by Part 2 on December 25 and the finale on New Year’s Day.
Silent Hill f actor says she broke down in tears recording Hinako’s scenes