There have been conflicting reports and statements regarding the longevity of Stranger Things, but the latest update on the future of the Netflix series comes directly from the creators themselves. Or it did, until the THR interview with the Duffer brothers was mysteriously taken down. Thankfully (or regrettably), everything is permanent on the internet, and as TVLine and others have noted, the original report quotes Ross Duffer as saying “Season 4 won’t be the end” of Stranger Things. Production on the fourth season of the Netflix series was halted back in March due to our old pal the COVID-19 pandemic, which apparently gave the Duffer brothers some time to plot out the endgame. “We know what the end is, and we know when it is,” said Ross Duffer. “[The coronavirus pandemic] has given us time to look ahead, figure out what is best for the show. Starting to fill that out gave us a better idea of how long we need to tell that story.”
It was previously reported that the series would end with either a fourth season split into two parts (as has become common among popular TV series in recent years), or with a full fifth season—and the latter could still be true given that the Duffers haven’t specified exactly how long the series will continue past the fourth season, which will likely debut in 2021. The next installment of the series will pick up where season three left off: Hopper (David Harbour) is believed to be dead but is actually being held prisoner in Russia, while Eleven, Joyce, and Will have moved away from Hawkins. If nothing else, it’ll definitely be interesting to see how the Duffers handle the timeline of upcoming seasons given how quickly these damn kids are growing up.