Stranger Things' Biggest, Most Difficult Episode To Shoot Wasn't The Netflix Series' Finale

Season 4 of "Stranger Things" was a two-part spectacle. The reasons behind this split were pragmatic, as the showrunners couldn't deliver all nine episodes at once, opting for a climactic break-off point instead. Season 5 of the hit Netflix show, however, is set to be released in three parts — the first two volumes on November 26 and December 25, respectively, with the series finale concluding the saga on December 31. This three-part split is a deliberate strategy to allow some breathing space between Volumes One and Two, given that the first part, which contains four episodes, ends with an emotionally significant climax.

In the December 2025 issue of SFX Magazine, Ross Duffer spoke about the challenges that came with the massive scale of episode 4, and how the finale is supposed to be the most emotionally hard-hitting chapter:

"I'm also excited about the first volume because, in season four, we weren't aware that it was going to get split in two [...] Volume One really exists as its own mega-movie. It has its own climax. So episode four [titled 'Sorcerer'] is pretty f***ing massive. It's definitely the hardest thing that we've ever done on a technical level. Episode four was the most challenging episode we've ever made, and that includes the finale – though on an emotional level, the finale was the hardest. I don't know how many days I found myself crying, and I'm not someone who cries very often outside of watching Pixar movies."

It makes sense for the final season to be a tearjerker or embrace a bittersweet sentiment. The show's season 5 trailer doesn't paint a pretty picture of Hawkins, which automatically heightens the stakes for every character involved.

The fourth episode of the previous season, "Dear Billy," is a brilliant one. It contains all the narrative hallmarks that made "Stranger Things" such a sensation in the first place — a tightly woven, well-paced story with meaningful stakes, whose emotional catharsis feels sincere and thoroughly earned. While a lot happens in this episode, the heart of this arc is Max (Sadie Sink), who comes very, very close to dying.

The build-up to this moment is wrought with grief, as Max mourns Billy (Dacre Montgomery) while lamenting a life that could've been. What Max craves is an ounce of normalcy: maybe, if Billy didn't sacrifice himself to save everyone, he and Max could have come close to being affectionate siblings someday. Maybe, just maybe, Max wouldn't have to be crippled by guilt and self-loathing and could've experienced the highs and lows of adolescence like every other kid.

But this is Hawkins, and Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower) is hell-bent on killing Max, which is why he assumes Billy's appearance to mock her grief. What happens next is a disorienting trip to the Upside Down, followed by the most moving rescue attempt by her friends, with Kate Bush's "Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)" blaring as Max makes a heroic escape. Season 5 might replicate a similar narrative juncture in its fourth episode, but the stakes will be higher than ever, as the gang has one final chance to band together to defeat Vecna once and for all.

Well, anything can happen in the final season. While Max was lucky enough to be saved in the nick of time in "Dear Billy," the upcoming episode 4 might not be as forgiving towards its primary characters.