Netflix released three new episodes of Stranger Things season 5, volume 2, on Christmas Day 2025, revealing the true nature of the Upside Down. The episodes explain it as a wormhole bridging Hawkins to a new realm called the Abyss. Fans eagerly awaited the drop, which builds toward the series finale on New Year's Eve.
The final season of Stranger Things continued with the release of volume 2 on December 25, 2025, at 8 p.m. ET, following the first four episodes in November that left viewers on a cliffhanger. This batch of three episodes aired nearly a month later, with the two-plus-hour series finale scheduled for New Year's Eve at the same time.
Stranger Things, which debuted on Netflix in 2016, has become a cultural phenomenon, amassing over 1 billion streams across its five seasons. Set in the fictional town of Hawkins, Indiana, during the 1980s, the series follows a group of friends who discover a paranormal world known as the Upside Down. The story began with Will Byers' abduction to this dimension in the 2016 premiere episode. The ensemble, including Eleven—a girl with telekinetic powers and a '11' tattoo—fights supernatural forces while uncovering Eleven's origins and the Upside Down's secrets.
Volume 1 introduced a massive wall in the Upside Down, believed to be the threshold Vecna crossed while abducting Holly Wheeler. In episode 5 of volume 2, Dustin Henderson theorizes the wall was created by Vecna's dark magic. He, Steve, Nancy, and Jonathan search for and attempt to destroy a shield generator protecting it, referencing Return of the Jedi. However, Dustin discovers from Dr. Brenner's old notes that the Upside Down is not another dimension but a wormhole—a bridge between Hawkins and the Abyss, where Vecna and his creatures reside.
Destroying the wall would collapse the bridge, endangering everyone inside. Nancy shoots the generator, causing it to crumble, but the group escapes unscathed. In episode 7, reunited at The Squawk—including a revived Max Mayfield—Dustin explains the wormhole to the others. With insights from Max's side quest with Holly, they deduce Vecna's plan to merge the worlds using the minds of abducted Hawkins children. The episode ends as Vecna enlists the kids to unite the universes.
The release coincided with Netflix's NFL Christmas Gameday, featuring cross-promotions like actors Caleb McLaughlin and Gaten Matarazzo in a video saying, “It is a big day.” Volume 1 drew nearly 60 million views in its first week, making it Netflix's largest English-language premiere.
