Stranger Things season 5 finale won't get a theatrical release after all, says Netflix content chief: "Releasing it on Netflix is giving the fans what they want"

The final episode of Stranger Things won't be getting a theatrical release, despite clocking in at a feature-length runtime.

According to co-creator Matt Duffer, the Stranger Things season 5 finale is "around two hours," but Netflix's chief content officer Bela Bajaria is certain that the episode doesn't need to be screened in multiplexes.

"A lot of people – a lot, a lot, a lot of people – have watched Stranger Things on Netflix," Bajaria told Variety. "It has not suffered from lack of conversation or community or sharing or fandom. I think releasing it on Netflix is giving the fans what they want."

It sounds like the Duffer brothers wouldn't have been opposed to the idea, though. "People don’t get to experience how much time and effort is spent on sound and picture, and they’re seeing it at reduced quality," Duffer told the publication. "More than that, it’s about experiencing it at the same time with fans."

In fact, the prospect of theatrically releasing future movie projects seems to be a key reason the Duffers are moving away from Netflix post-Stranger Things to work with Paramount. "I don’t want to get into the specifics of it," he said of their new deal with the studio. "But I will say the biggest draw to us was just to be able to do something theatrical, which is not something Netflix does."

Millie Bobby Brown, Finn Wolfhard, Caleb McLaughlin, Noah Schnapp, Gaten Matarazzo, Sadie Sink, Winona Ryder, and David Harbour are all returning for Stranger Things' final season, alongside some new additions, including Terminator star Linda Hamilton.

The first volume of Stranger Things season 5 arrives on Netflix on November 26, with subsequent episodes following on December 25 and December 31. In the meantime, check out our guide to the other best shows on Netflix to add to your watchlist.