Stranger Things Final Season to Feature New and Returning Heroes

Netflix has released the first teaser for the fifth and final season of Stranger Things, to be released this fall/winter. The full trailer is just a minute long, but it4s enough to give fans a preview of what to expect from the season finale: a nightmarish battle of epic proportions.

Season 54s teaser trailer starts in medias res, with shots of the Upside Down creeping into Hawkins. The eerie environments of the Upside Down, along with footage of demo-dogs on the prowl and action set pieces like flamethrowers, come fast and hard. Linda Hamilton even makes a special cameo appearance, bursting into Hawkins fully armed and battle-ready to join forces with the Hawkins gang.

The Season 4 finale ended with Vecna (the evil force behind all the bad guys) ripping a massive gate in the Upside Down, letting everything ooze into Hawkins. As this teaser makes clear, Season 5 picks up well into the future, in the fall of 1987. Season 5 also happens to fall on the exact third anniversary of the date Will Byers first disappeared in Season 1.

Season 5 will consist of eight episodes, but make no mistake: each installment will be feature-length. Netflix is going full movie of the week for Stranger Things Season 5, so expect eight Stranger Things movies in total.

Season 5 Teaser Trailer Official Synopsis: Hawkins has changed forever. The Rifts have opened, and all those who wear the Hawkins name are driven by one thing: Find and kill Vecna. But the question is, where to find him? As the anniversary of Will4s disappearance quickly approaches, Vecna4s actions have never been more unpredictable. Hawkins is under military quarantine, the government is at large to capture Eleven, and Hawkins is on the run. It4s a somber reminder that no one is safe. It4s time for the full partyeveryone we loveto band together one last time. Netflix.

The Cast Is Back, Plus Several Recurring Favorites

The main cast will all return for the season finale, along with several characters that have come and gone throughout Stranger Things4 run.

Amybeth McNulty will reprise her role as Vicki. Gabriella Pizzolo will return as Dustin4s girlfriend, Suzie. Jamie Campbell Bower will return as Vecna.

Several new characters have also been confirmed. Linda Hamilton is set to play Dr. Kay, a role made perfect for Hamilton4s no-nonsense persona and action-hero cred. Newcomers Nell Fisher (Holly Wheeler), Jake Connelly (Derek Turnbow), and Alex Breaux (Lt. Akers) will also feature in the season.

Scenes in the teaser trailer were chosen to rile up the fanbase. There4s one set piece where Lucas and others have to run from a pack of demo-dogs, with editing, camera angles, and lighting that is a purposeful and direct homage to the kitchen scene in Steven Spielberg4s Jurassic Park.

As for the scare factor, the teaser makes great use of familiar voice actors like Patrick Toomey, the gravelly-voiced actor behind Vecna4s disturbing found you catchphrase from Season 4. We were never quite sure how, but the teaser clearly shows that Vecna has gained a new terrifying means of possession.

But a line in the teaser gives new meaning to the phrase heavy petting: Eddie Munson4s gravestone has been vandalized with Burn in hell. Eddie, who fans of the show are convinced sacrificed himself in the Season 4 finale, clearly did not have everything go his way in Hawkins. Eddie, whose death was one of the most upsetting since Bob Newby4s tragic Season 2 ending, still has a lot to prove in this life even in death.

Finally, the three-part Season 5 Release Schedule

As promised, Stranger Things Season 5 will be the feature-length movie of the week Netflix has been toying with for its big hitters. The decision to break the season into installments will irk fans who have been hoping for a direct release model that will let them watch the whole season in one go. The good news is that each volume will be available to watch all at once.