Skip to main content
Join The Community
- Join our community
11
Premium Benefits
24/7
Access Available
21K+
Active Members
Commenting
Join the discussion
Exclusive Articles Coming Soon
Member-only articles
Weekly Newsletters
Weekly gaming & entertainment news
Member Badges
Earn badges as you go
Exclusive Competitions
Members-only prize draws
Curated Deals Coming Soon
Tech and gaming deals worth grabbing
GET COMMUNITY ACCESS QUICK
For the quickest way to join, simply enter your email below and get access. We will send a confirmation and sign you up to our newsletter to keep you updated on all your gaming news.
By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.
FIND OUT ABOUT OUR MAGAZINE
Want to subscribe to the magazine? Click the button below to find out more information.
Find out more
GET Community ACCESS QUICK

Join the GamesRadar community for quick access. Enter your email below and we'll send confirmation, and sign you up to our newsletter.

By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

Background
Welcome to GamesRADAR+ Community !
Hi ,

Your membership journey starts here.

Keep exploring and earning more as a member.

MY ACCOUNT

Badge picture
Earn your first badge
Read 1 article to unlock your first badge.
Keep earning badges
Explore ways to get more involved as a member.
Latest Games News

Latest Games News

Breaking gaming news and updates

Read Now
Latest Games Reviews

Latest Games Reviews

Expert verdicts on the newest releases

Read Now

See what you’ve unlocked.

Explore your membership benefits.

Explore
Member Exclusives

Stay Ahead with GamesRadar+

Get the biggest gaming news, reviews, and releases straight to your inbox.

Explore

Sign Out
  • TotalFilm
  • Edge
  • Newsarama
  • Retrogamer
GamesRadar+ GamesRadar+
US EditionUS CA EditionCanada UK EditionUK AU EditionAustralia
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • News
  • Reviews
  • Features
  • More
    • PS5
    • Xbox Series X
    • Nintendo Switch
    • Nintendo Switch 2
    • PC
    • Platforms
    • Tabletop Gaming
    • Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Newsletters
    • About us
    • Features
Trending
  • Best Netflix Movies
  • Movie Release Dates
  • Best movies on Disney Plus
  • Best Netflix Shows
Don't miss these
Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven in Stranger Things season 5 volume 2
Sci-Fi Shows Stranger Things season 5 reviews, cast, plot, and everything else you need to know about the final season of the Netflix show
Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven, David Harbour as Hopper and Linnea Berthelsen as Kali in Stranger Things season 5 volume 2
Sci-Fi Shows Stranger Things season 5 part 2 ending explained: who dies, what is the Upside Down, and how does it set up the finale
Jamie Campbell Bower as Vecna in Stranger Things season 5 volume 2, in the Upside Down
Sci-Fi Shows Stranger Things season 5 runtimes confirmed, and the final episode is 3 minutes longer than previously announced
Will Byers and Vecna in Stranger Things season 5
Supernatural Shows Where is the Mind Flayer? What is Vecna really planning with the Abyss, and 6 other questions I need answered in the Stranger Things season 5 finale
Stranger Things: Tales from '85
Sci-Fi Shows First trailer for Stranger Things spin-off Tales from '85 is here to fill the Upside Down-shaped hole in our hearts
(L to R) Gaten Matarazzo as Dustin Henderson, Finn Wolfhard as Mike Wheeler, Caleb McLaughlin as Lucas Sinclair, and Noah Schnapp as Will Byers in Stranger Things 5.
Supernatural Shows Stranger Things season 5 finale won't deliver Game of Thrones-level carnage: "We're not trying to upset anyone"
Will, Mike, and Joyce in Stranger Things season 5
Sci-Fi Shows Stranger Things season 5 release schedule: when is episode 8 and Volume 2 on Netflix?
Winona Ryder as Joyce and Noah Schnapp as Will in Stranger Things season 5
Sci-Fi Shows Stranger Things season 5 finale explained: who dies, does it set up a spin-off and what happens to Eleven?
Millie Bobbie Brown as Eleven in Stranger Things season 5
Sci-Fi Shows Stranger Things fans are divided over season 5's final episode: "[The] finale is a mess… but I’m still happy with it"
Caleb McLaughlin as Lucas, Sadie Sink as Max, Noah Schnapp as Will, and Gaten Matarazzo as Dustin in Stranger Things season 5
Sci-Fi Shows I love Stranger Things, but I can't help feeling short-changed by season 5's lacklustre finale
Finn Wolfhard as Mike Wheeler in the Stranger Things season 5 finale
Sci-Fi Shows "Now I have so many more friends": Stranger Things cast's final goodbye on set revealed in new documentary
Stranger Things documentary
Sci-Fi Shows Surprise: Stranger Things isn't over yet, as a behind the scenes documentary is confirmed to land on Netflix soon
Jamie Campbell Bower as Henry Creel in Stranger Things season 5
Supernatural Shows Stranger Things season 5 finally reveals what the Upside Down actually is, though the stage show did it first in 2023
Jamie Campbell Bower as Vecna in Stranger Things season 5
Sci-Fi Shows Vecna star Jamie Campbell Bower thinks his Stranger Things season 5 fate is "the ending the show deserves"
Finn Wolfhard as Mike Wheeler and Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven in Stranger Things season 5
Sci-Fi Shows Netflix shares emotional goodbye to Stranger Things after the season 5 finale, and now we're crying all over again
  1. Entertainment
  2. TV
  3. Supernatural Shows
  4. Stranger Things

First Stranger Things season 5 trailer teases the final battle from hell – and judging by the blood, it's clear only some of the Hawkins gang are making it out alive

News
By Amy West published 16 July 2025

Vecna is back, and he's out for revenge

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

  • Facebook
  • X
  • Pinterest
  • Flipboard
  • Email
Share this article
0
Join the conversation
Follow us
Add us as a preferred source on Google
Get the GamesRadar+ Newsletter

Bringing all the latest movie news, features, and reviews to your inbox


By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

You are now subscribed

Your newsletter sign-up was successful


Join the club

Get full access to premium articles, exclusive features and a growing list of member rewards.


An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
Subscribe to our newsletter
Stranger Things 5 | Official Teaser | Netflix - YouTube Stranger Things 5 | Official Teaser | Netflix - YouTube
Watch On

The first trailer for the last season of Stranger Things is finally here – and don't mind us, we're just sobbing at the thought of one of the best shows on Netflix coming to an end.

As expected, the promo, which you can watch above, doesn't give away all that much, but it does reveal details of the time jump, plonking us in the fall of 1987 – and a Hawkins that's now under military quarantine. Watch it above.

"Scarred by the opening of the Rifts, our heroes are united by a single goal: find and kill Vecna. But he has vanished – his whereabouts and plans unknown," reads the official synopsis, as it teases that Eleven has been forced back into hiding thanks to the government's intensified hunt to track her down. "As the anniversary of Will's disappearance approaches, so does a heavy, familiar dread. The final battle is looming – and with it, a darkness more powerful and more deadly than anything they've faced before. To end this nightmare, they'll need everyone – the full party – standing together, one last time."

You may like
  • Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven in Stranger Things season 5 volume 2 Stranger Things season 5 reviews, cast, plot, and everything else you need to know about the final season of the Netflix show
  • Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven, David Harbour as Hopper and Linnea Berthelsen as Kali in Stranger Things season 5 volume 2 Stranger Things season 5 part 2 ending explained: who dies, what is the Upside Down, and how does it set up the finale
  • Jamie Campbell Bower as Vecna in Stranger Things season 5 volume 2, in the Upside Down Stranger Things season 5 runtimes confirmed, and the final episode is 3 minutes longer than previously announced

With that, the teaser features much of what we've come to expect from the hit series: dreaded demogorgons, emotional pep talks, and characters staring off into the distance with determined looks on their faces. Though there's one thing that struck us, and that's the amount of blood; be it a tearful Nancy washing her sticky red hands in a basin and Dustin's battered and bruised face to a crimson-collared Lucas cowering from with an unseen foe. It seems safe to assume not all of our pals are making it out of this fight alive.

Season 4 concluded with every group – in Nevada, Indiana, and Russia, respectively –somewhat unknowingly teaming up to take down Vecna. While Max baited his mind at the Creel House, Robin, Steve, and Nancy set fire to his defenseless physical form in the Upside Down. Simultaneously, Mike and Will dunk Eleven in a makeshift sensory deprivation tank, and her consciousness finds its way to Max to assist her in facing off against the big bad. But as Will states towards the end of episode 9, Vecna is far from defeated.

"Now that I'm back in Hawkins, I can feel him. And he's hurt, he's hurting, but he's still alive... He's not gonna stop, ever, not until he's taken everything... everyone... We have to kill him," Will solemnly told Mike, teasing one heck of a showdown in the fifth and final chapter.

Now it wouldn't be Stranger Things without adding a few new characters into the mix, even if they're not due to stick around long (we still miss you, Eddie). Those joining the existing cast this time around include Jake Connelly, Alex Breaux, Nell Fisher (Evil Dead Rise) and Terminator star Linda Hamilton.

With Netflix doubling down on what it did with the show's previous season, Stranger Things season 5 is set to be released in three parts: the first landing on November 26, the second half dropping on Christmas Day (December 25), and the finale airing on January 1, 2026. For more, check out our our picks of the best Netflix shows to stream right now.

CATEGORIES
Netflix Streaming Services
Amy West
Amy West
Social Links Navigation
Entertainment Writer

I am an Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, covering all things TV and film across our Total Film and SFX sections. Elsewhere, my words have been published by the likes of Digital Spy, SciFiNow, PinkNews, FANDOM, Radio Times, and Total Film magazine.

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.

Read more
Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven in Stranger Things season 5 volume 2
Sci-Fi Shows Stranger Things season 5 reviews, cast, plot, and everything else you need to know about the final season of the Netflix show
 
 
Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven, David Harbour as Hopper and Linnea Berthelsen as Kali in Stranger Things season 5 volume 2
Sci-Fi Shows Stranger Things season 5 part 2 ending explained: who dies, what is the Upside Down, and how does it set up the finale
 
 
Jamie Campbell Bower as Vecna in Stranger Things season 5 volume 2, in the Upside Down
Sci-Fi Shows Stranger Things season 5 runtimes confirmed, and the final episode is 3 minutes longer than previously announced
 
 
Will Byers and Vecna in Stranger Things season 5
Supernatural Shows Where is the Mind Flayer? What is Vecna really planning with the Abyss, and 6 other questions I need answered in the Stranger Things season 5 finale
 
 
Stranger Things: Tales from '85
Sci-Fi Shows First trailer for Stranger Things spin-off Tales from '85 is here to fill the Upside Down-shaped hole in our hearts
 
 
(L to R) Gaten Matarazzo as Dustin Henderson, Finn Wolfhard as Mike Wheeler, Caleb McLaughlin as Lucas Sinclair, and Noah Schnapp as Will Byers in Stranger Things 5.
Supernatural Shows Stranger Things season 5 finale won't deliver Game of Thrones-level carnage: "We're not trying to upset anyone"
 
 
Latest in Supernatural Shows
Jamie Campbell Bower as Vecna in Stranger Things season 5
Supernatural Shows There was a longer version of the Stranger Things season 5 finale, but it wasn't actually written: "You can't get all your ideas in there"
 
 
Will Byers and Vecna in Stranger Things season 5
Supernatural Shows Where is the Mind Flayer? What is Vecna really planning with the Abyss, and 6 other questions I need answered in the Stranger Things season 5 finale
 
 
Jamie Campbell Bower as Henry Creel in Stranger Things season 5
Supernatural Shows Stranger Things season 5 finally reveals what the Upside Down actually is, though the stage show did it first in 2023
 
 
(L to R) Gaten Matarazzo as Dustin Henderson, Finn Wolfhard as Mike Wheeler, Caleb McLaughlin as Lucas Sinclair, and Noah Schnapp as Will Byers in Stranger Things 5.
Supernatural Shows Stranger Things season 5 finale won't deliver Game of Thrones-level carnage: "We're not trying to upset anyone"
 
 
Nell Fisher as Holly Wheeler in Stranger Things Season 5 Volume 1
Supernatural Shows Stranger Things creator explains why there were no deaths in season 5, volume 1: "Vecna taking these children was the low point we needed"
 
 
Caleb McLaughlin as Lucas Sinclair and Sadie Sink as Max Mayfield in Stranger Things 5.
Supernatural Shows Stranger Things still has "movie touch points" in season 5, but its creators were more concerned with doing justice to the story it began almost a decade ago
 
 
Latest in News
Palworld Official Card Game
Survival Games Palworld lead was "super excited" for Blizzard's AAA survival game, but it's about time someone tries again
 
 
Key art for The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered, showing the hero standing in front of a flaming logo oblivion gate
The Elder Scrolls Todd Howard wanted Bethesda's original RPGs to be playable before worrying about remasters: "You can play Morrowind"
 
 
Assassin's Creed Shadows screenshot showing Yasuke kneeling and praying while wearing a traditional purple robe
Assassin's Creed Assassin's Creed Shadows lead is simply "proud" the game launched because "shipping a game nowadays is a small miracle"
 
 
Screenshot from Minecraft Dungeons 2's reveal trailer, showing a bunch of villagers standing around a blocky village.
Minecraft Minecraft Dungeons 2 takes another stab at Mojang's surprisingly great Diablo-inspired RPG spin-off later this year
 
 
Palworld
Survival Games "We have no desire to be a media empire," says Palworld publishing head but Pocketpair would be stupid to let it die out
 
 
Protagonist Jordan in a screenshot from the reveal trailer for Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet.
The Last of Us Neil Druckmann's teasing the return of a The Last of Us actor in Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet
 
 
LATEST ARTICLES
  1. Palworld Official Card Game
    1
    Palworld lead was "super excited" for Blizzard's AAA survival game, but it's about time someone tries again
  2. 2
    Todd Howard wanted Bethesda's original RPGs to be playable before worrying about remasters: "You can play Morrowind"
  3. 3
    Assassin's Creed Shadows lead is simply "proud" the game launched because "shipping a game nowadays is a small miracle"
  4. 4
    Baldur's Gate 3 writer says the RPG's reputation system exists as Larian can't just let players "break" party members
  5. 5
    New Star Wars show Maul - Shadow Lord's animation mixes CG and traditional techniques

GamesRadar+ is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google
  • Terms and conditions
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Accessibility statement
  • Careers
  • About us
  • Advertise with us
  • Review guidelines
  • Write for us
  • Accessibility Statement

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...