How Long After Season 4 It Takes Place

Ahead of Stranger Things season 5, Netflix confirmed the timeline for the final installment’s story, which will include a notable time jump. Netflix’s Stranger Things became a massive hit upon its release in 2016, partly due to its compelling sci-fi horror premise and partly due to its setting and nostalgia for the 1980s.

While the show from the Duffer Brothers has been able to pay tribute to numerous aspects of life in the early and mid-’80s, there have been plenty of questions about how far Stranger Things season 5’s series-ending decade coverage would go. So far, Stranger Things’ timeline has covered three years of the 1980s. Season 1 began in the fall of 1983, season 2 picked up in the fall of 1984, season 3 covered the summer of 1985, and season 4 concluded in the spring of 1986.

Stranger Things’ season 4 finale ended with a cliffhanger revealing Vecna’s takeover of Hawkins, but since then, the Duffers revealed that there would be a time jump when the characters return in the fifth and final season. Netflix has also provided the exact timeline of season 5’s story, setting the record for Stranger Things’ biggest time jump.

Stranger Things Season 5 Is Set In The Fall Of 1987

Stranger Things’ Final Season Takes Place 4 Years After Will First Went Missing

Netflix has confirmed that Stranger Things season 5’s primary setting is in the fall of 1987, meaning that the show’s concluding installment takes place exactly four years after the pilot episode, as Will Byers originally vanished on November 6, 1983. Of course, it’s always possible that there will be more time jumps to follow.

Season 1 ended with a one-month time jump to Christmas, with Stranger Things season 3’s ending including a three-month time jump. Therefore, while it now seems that the timeline will stop shortly before 1988, the series might still conclude with a few time jumps to reveal what happens to Stranger Things’ main characters and the entire town of Hawkins.

Since the younger teens are set to graduate from high school in the spring of 1989, it might be fitting to include a final time jump as they simultaneously wrap up their childhoods and close the curtains on the 1980s. However, Hawkins’ final battle against Vecna and the Upside Down will still begin in the fall of 1987. Based on the official trailer for Stranger Things season 5, the group from Hawkins has waited long enough to take down Vecna, and their time to fight back is running out.

Though fans waited over three years for the final season, the concluding chapter won’t be available all at once. Stranger Things season 5’s release schedule is split into three parts, with the first four episodes releasing on November 26, the next three episodes on December 25, and the series finale arriving on December 31. Granted, the franchise is continuing in 2026 with an animated spinoff titled Stranger Things: Tales from ’85.

Stranger Things Season 5 Takes Place A Year And A Half After Season 4

The Party Will Already Be 16 Years Old In Stranger Things Season 5

When the characters return in Stranger Things season 5, a year and a half will have already passed since the season 4 finale. This marks the longest time jump between seasons for Stranger Things; the gap between seasons 1 and 2 was about ten months, the jump from season 2 to season 3 was approximately six months, and the time between seasons 3 and 4 was about nine months.

With such a long gap, the teens are going to look very different from how they were in the final moments of Stranger Things season 4, both physically and emotionally. The characters’ ages in Stranger Things have been a major point of discussion, especially with season 5 releasing over three years after the previous installment.

The 18-month gap brings Stranger Things’ younger characters to very different places in their adolescence and young adulthood. The Party will be approximately 16–17 years old in Stranger Things season 5; Erica is about 12–13; Jonathan, Nancy, and Robin will be about 19–20; and Steve Harrington will be around 20–21 years old. One of the biggest changes will be with Mike and Nancy’s younger sister Holly Wheeler, who began Stranger Things as a toddler but should seemingly be around eight years old in season 5.

Stranger Things Season 5 Will Also Return To 1983

The Show Is Going Back To The Beginning

Netflix

As revealed in the first five minutes of Stranger Things season 5, which Netflix released ahead of Volume 1’s release, the story will feature a flashback to 1983. More specifically, viewers will see more of what happened while Will was trapped in the Upside Down following his “disappearance.” Expanding on the season 1 scene with Will taking refuge in the Upside Down’s version of Castle Byers, the Stranger Things season 5 clip sees Will initially escape the Demogorgon before being captured and taken to Vecna.

After incapacitating Will, Vecna proclaims that they “can begin,” adding that they will “do such beautiful things together.” Not only does the scene reveal that Vecna encountered Will during the 1983 event, but it also reiterates that the villain has been pulling the strings all along. Perhaps Stranger Things season 5 will feature flashbacks to other periods within the show’s timeline, whether it’s to bridge gaps in the story or expand on scenes, like the case with Will’s time in the Upside Down.

Release Date

2016 – 2025-00-00

Network

Netflix

Showrunner

Matt Duffer, Ross Duffer

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