Stranger Things season 5 finale ending explained: What happens to Hawkins, the kids and the others?

Released on Netflix on December 31, 2025, Stranger Things season 5 finale titled The Rightside Up, concluded the Hawkins story with a two-hour-long episode, which shows the Hawkins crew finally battling to stop the Upside Down and Vecna, forever. While Eleven used her powers to fight Vecna in a mental battle, her sister Kali (008) returned to help the group.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers about the show. Viewer's discretion is advised.

After Henry is defeated along with the Upside Down, and the kids are safe, the Stranger Things season 5 finale ended with a jump forward in time to the summer of 1989.

The main group of friends finally grew up and graduated from high school, leaving their scary past behind. The last shot showed Mike’s younger sister, Holly, starting her own Dungeons & Dragons game with her friends. It showed that even though the main story is over, new adventures in Hawkins are just beginning.

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Stranger Things season 5 finale ending explained: Vecna's death, Eleven's fate and the new generation of D&D group after the chaos finally ends

During the Stranger Things season 5 finale climax, Joyce Byers steps forward with a rusted axe and delivers the final blow, decapitating Vecna and permanently breaking his hold over the world. With his death, the Mind Flayer’s physical form begins to dissolve into dust, and the terrifying gates connecting the dimensions finally begin to close.

As the supernatural threat vanishes, the story shifts into a long epilogue set 18 months later in the summer of 1989. The tension of the "Satanic Panic" and the secret wars has faded, leaving the town of Hawkins to heal. The core group of friends is shown growing up and moving in different directions.

Dustin is seen at his high school graduation, where he wears a tassel in honor of Eddie Munson, keeping his friend's memory alive. Steve Harrington has stayed in town and found a steady life working at the local high school. He is now the baseball coach and a sex-ed teacher, with Derek playing as the catcher on his team.

Nancy Wheeler decided to leave Emerson College early to jump straight into a professional journalism career. Meanwhile, Robin Buckley is busy with her studies at Smith College, and Jonathan Byers has moved to New York to work on a film project at NYU.

Stranger Things season 5 finale also gives the happy conclusion to the Byers and Hopper family. Hopper finally proposes to Joyce, and the two discuss leaving the trauma of Hawkins behind for a fresh start in Montauk. However, the fate of Eleven remains the show's biggest mystery. While the public believes she died during the final explosion in the Upside Down, Mike and Will share a private hope that she survived.

Mike tells the group a story about how Eleven might have used her sister Kali's powers to hide herself from the military. During the final scenes of Stranger Things season 5 finale, Eleven is show standing at the top of a cliff near a waterfall, suggesting she is safe and living a peaceful life in secret.

The very final scene brings the story back to where it all began: the Wheelers' basement. The original Party: Mike, Will, Dustin, and Lucas gather for one last game of Dungeons & Dragons in the final scene of Stranger Things season 5 finale.

They play with heavy hearts, eventually packing away their character sheets and dice, highlighting the end of their childhood. As they walk upstairs to join their families for dinner, Mike’s younger sister, Holly, leads her own group of friends into the basement to start a new game.

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Stranger Things season 5 finale is now streaming on Netflix.

Edited by Suchita Patnaha