The runtimes for the first four episodes of Netflix’s hit series Stranger Things have been revealed by series co-creator, Russ Duffer. These episodes constitute Volume 1 of the fifth season, which is being split into three parts.
Fans have been eager to learn the episode lengths after rumors suggested some episodes could top two hours. This, fortunately, is not the case. While many fans were excited by the prospect of movie-long episodes, I think the reality would be an overly-long season stuffed with filler that sacrificed pacing in favor of quantity. The actual runtimes are plenty long as it stands, and it’s entirely possible that the finale will be movie-length.
Stranger Things 5, Volume 1 Runtimes
Duffer posted the actual runtimes on Instagram:
- Chapter One: The Crawl – 1 hour and 8 minutes
- Chapter Two: The Vanishing of Holly Wheeler – 54 minutes
- Chapter Three: The Turnbow Trap – 1 hour and 6 minutes
- Chapter Four: Sorcerer – 1 hour and 23 minutes
This also means that the three episodes in Volume 2 will be under 1 hour and 23 minutes, since the Duffer Brothers have previously stated that episodes 4 and 8 are the longest.
The other four episodes are:
- Chapter Five: Shock Jock
- Chapter Six: Escape From Camazotz
- Chapter Seven: The Bridge
- Chapter Eight: The Rightside Up
Stranger Things 5 Netflix Release Dates
We don’t have much longer to wait to reunite with the Stranger Things gang: Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown), Mike (Finn Wolfhard), Will (Noah Schnapp), Caleb (Lucas Sinclair), Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo) and Max (Sadie Sink) will kick off their final adventure this coming November. Jim (David Harbour), Joyce (Winona Ryder), Nancy (Natalia Dyer), Steve (Joe Keery), Jonathan (Charlie Heaton) and Robin (Maya Hawke) will return for this final confrontation with Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower) and the Upside Down as well.
Volume 1 lands on Netflix on November 26th at 5pm PT / 8pm ET. Volume 2, which will consist of episodes 5-7, drops on Christmas Day (December 25th) at the same time. The 8th and final episode of the entire series releases the same time on New Year’s Eve (January 31st). The Duffer Brothers apparently want us to spend both Christmas and New Year’s Eve watching Stranger Things, and I’m sure many people will do just that.
- Volume 1: November 26th at 5pm PT / 8pm ET
- Volume 2: Christmas, 5pm PT / 8pm ET
- The Finale: New Year’s Eve, 5pm PT / 8pm ET
What Happened In Stranger Things 4?
In Season 4, we finally learned of the dark power behind the Upside Down: Vecna, once a human named Henry Creel, who as a child used his psychic powers to torture his family, killing his mother and sister. His father, Victor, was blamed for their deaths and imprisoned.
Henry was taken by Dr. Martin Brenner (Matthew Modine) to the Hawkins National Laboratory for study, given the designation 001 as the lab’s first child test subject (Eleven is 011). Henry tricked Eleven into removing the “Soteria” implant, leading to a massacre at the lab and a showdown between him and Eleven, who used her powers to send him into an alternate dimension, the Upside Down, where he became Vecna and began sending the various monsters we’ve encountered over the past few seasons – such as the Mind Flayer and Demogorgon – into Hawkins for revenge.
After a major showdown between Eleven and her companions, Vecna was injured but not defeated. Newcomer Eddie Munson (Joseph Quinn) was killed during the battle. At the end of the season, Max remains in a coma, her spirit still under Vecna’s thrall, while giant rifts have opened up in Hawkins.
What Do We Know About Stranger Things 5?
Stranger Things 5 takes place in 1987, one year after the events of Stranger Things 4. Max remains in a coma. The rifts – portals to the Upside Down – also remain open. The group’s main goal is to save Max and find and kill Vecna, and to survive.
Complicating matters, Hawkins is under military quarantine and Eleven is being hunted by authorities. The anniversary of Will’s first disappearance – when he was captured by the Demogorgon and taken to the Upside Down in Stranger Things 1 (still the best season of the show) – is fast approaching.
Frank Darabont (the original creator of The Walking Dead TV show) is coming out of retirement to direct Chapter Three: The Turnbow Trap, which was described as “the most classic Stranger Things-y episode” by Ross Duffer.
Chapter Six – Escape From Camazotz – suggests our heroes will face a new powerful demon. In D&D, Camazotz is a demonic lesser deity of bats. The demon can control other demons as well as vampires, and should prove a terrifying new foe. Whether all of our heroes will escape remains to be seen.
The season’s budget is massive, reportedly costing $50-60 million per episode, with a total budget of $400-520 million, one of the most expensive seasons of television ever made.
Linda Hamilton (Terminator) joins the cast as Dr. Kay. Little is known about her, though it appears she is part of the US military, and likely has ties to Dr. Brenner and potentially other characters in Hawkins. If previous seasons are any indication, Dr. Kay’s chance of survival is slim to none.
Stranger Things 5 Trailer
When the first trailer dropped, I have to admit that my somewhat dormant hype for this series was rekindled. Despite the long wait – and an aging cast – this is an excellent trailer. I hope they don’t release any new trailers after this because the fewer potential spoilers the better.
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For my part, I think I’ll have to rewatch the entire series before this one comes out. It’s been over three years since Stranger Things 4 released on Netflix, and longer still since I’ve watched previous seasons. I’m a little fuzzy on some of the details!
