Stranger Things’ cast and creatives have addressed the fan theory that claimed Netflix was secretly planning to release a bonus episode after the show’s finale.
The fifth and final season of the sci-fi phenomenon was released in three parts, with the feature-length finale landing on New Year’s Eve 2025 and bringing the story of Hawkins, Eleven and the Upside Down to a dramatic end.
However, after the final episode dropped, some fans became convinced that the ending was not the real conclusion at all.
The theory, dubbed “Conformity Gate” online, suggested that the events of the finale were actually an illusion created by Vecna, played by Jamie Campbell Bower, and that a surprise ninth episode would later be released as the show’s true ending.
Speaking at an Emmys For Your Consideration event in Los Angeles, Bower reflected on the speculation and admitted he had been taken aback by how far the theory spread.
“That was crazy, that was f**king crazy,” he said (according to The Hollywood Reporter), explaining that fans had also latched onto a social media video he recorded while promoting an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.
Noah Schnapp, who played Will Byers, added he was inundated with messages from people asking whether the ‘secret finale’ was real.
“I was like, ‘I promise you we did not film another episode.’ I don’t know where people got that from, I’ve never seen so many people convinced of something so wrong.”
Executive producer Shawn Levy also called the theory “baffling”, describing it as “wishful thinking” that took on a life of its own online.
“The sort of wishful thinking, legendary, fabled episode nine – that was baffling and thank God by that point I had learned not to even try engaging with people online,” he said.
Levy added that social media had become “this sort of self-fueling machine of theory and story”, saying he “felt bad” for fans who had convinced themselves another episode was coming.
The actual Stranger Things finale left some room for interpretation, with Eleven, played by Millie Bobby Brown, seemingly sacrificing herself inside the collapsing Upside Down before a later scene hinted that she may still be alive and in hiding.
Bower and Schnapp both said they believe Eleven survived, while Levy argued that the series creators, the Duffer Brothers, had managed to deliver a complete ending while still inviting fans to imagine what might happen next.
“The show ends but how we envision these characters moving forward is sort of up to us, it’s a little choose-your-own-adventure,” he said.
“For me, it was really successful, and you’ll never satisfy everyone but it feels like we satisfied most. That’s better than most series I can think of, especially ones with this kind of fan base, which is ferocious.”
Read more:
- Stranger Things spin-off series gets future confirmed mere days after release on Netflix
- When is Stranger Things: Tales from ‘85 set in the series timeline and is it canon?
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