On Nov. 6, 1983, William Byers went missing and, on Nov. 6, 2025, the first five minutes of Netflix’s highly-anticipated sci-fi series Stranger Things season five were released. The first official trailer for the fifth and final season was released on Oct. 26, and it was previously announced that this season will have three drop dates: Nov. 26 for the first four episodes, three episodes on Christmas Day, and the final episode on New Year’s Eve. It’s safe to say that Stranger Things will be controlling the holiday seasons of fans on a global scale, and the release of the first official trailer only amplified the craze. But, just like The Party, fans have their own speculations and theories on The Upside Down, the origin of Papa’s powerful children, and the close of a beloved series that spanned a decade. Major spoilers for the entire series ahead.
In season one, there is a scene towards the end of “Chapter Seven: The Bathtub” in which Eleven is attempting to locate Will by utilizing her powers. As she lays in that small pool—the sensory-deprivation technique that was used on her in Brenner’s lab—El finds herself in “the void” and eventually locates Will, either sleeping or unconscious, in the small treehouse he called “Castle Byers.” A few moments later, though, that vision of Will dissolves around her, leaving El alone and confused as to where he had gone. In the first five minutes of season five we were able to preview, we are shown young Will in Castle Byers, where he is eventually chased out by a demogorgon. One theory suggests that this is likely where El’s vision faded because—as we know—Vecna controls all of the Upside Down. This control, when combined with his connection with Eleven, it wouldn’t be hard to imagine that Vecna sent that demogorgon to Will and interrupted El’s own intervention. Will is caught and dragged to Vecna by this demogorgon, as shown in those five minutes, and it is there we see that Vecna himself had physically possessed Will, utilizing one of the tendrils to control him—a appendage we see Joyce and Hopper remove from Will’s body in “Chapter Eight: The Upside Down.”
This theory continues on to suggest Vecna allowed Will to be “saved” because he needed a spy outside of the Upside Down; Will is proven to be this spy when he leads a group of scientists straight into a trap in season two, in the episode aptly named “Chapter Two: The Spy.” This theory is the most sound by far, but it doesn’t really stretch the possible creativity of the Duffer Brothers and contains more clever observations.
One of the more creative theorists that challenges the obsessive level of a Swiftie, wonders if the “long-lost sister” plotline in season two wasn’t as unnecessary as many fans had thought. In season four, “Chapter One: The Hellfire Club,” the episode concludes with two scenes simultaneously: Lucas, attempting to score in his first varsity basketball game, and the Hellfire Club, finishing off a big Dungeons and Dragons campaign that Eddie had written. While Dustin is trying to defeat Vecna in this campaign, he needs to roll a fifteen or higher—he rolls an eleven, which isn’t enough on its own. The scene then cuts to Lucas, who steals the ball back from the opposing team, scoring a winning three points with only two seconds left. What this watcher notices, however, is that Lucas’ jersey is the number eight. Do the numbers eight and eleven sound familiar? When El meets her sister in season two, “Chapter Seven: The Lost Sister,” they compare the tattoos Brenner gave them in the lab. El’s, obviously, is 011, and her sister Kali’s is 008. So, in hopes that Kali’s character was more than just an incomplete side plot, this fan theorizes that while facing off against Vecna in season five, El may receive some help from her sister to defeat him. This is more far-fetched, but it is not uncommon of the Duffer Brothers to leave these “unnoticeable” hints that later lead to a future season’s plot.
Speaking of Dungeons and Dragons, the importance of the game is prevalent throughout many plotlines across all seasons. It’s where the kids get names for the demogorgons, the Mind Flayer, and Vecna. In a promo poster for season five, Vecna’s face imposes over the core four and Eleven as they ride their bikes, seemingly running from something. It’s not hard to notice that one of Vecna’s eyes is obstructed by smoke—but is it hidden, or is it missing? Delving into stories that come from D&D, that eye is a powerful tool to players. The Eye of Vecna can be used by the player that possesses it to gain truesight: a power that reveals deception and illusions, can turn the player invisible, and unleashes destruction. The catch is that the player’s character must replace one of their own eyes with the Eye of Vecna, and it will begin to corrupt that character over time, eventually allowing Vecna to take over their being entirely. Will has constantly been used by Vecna as a weapon and a spy. Looking back at the poster, Will is depicted to line up with Vecna’s missing eye, possibly hinting at his possession in a way audiences haven’t seen before.
This final theory quickly grew in popularity among fans, one Buzzfeed even featured in an article about Stranger Things predictions: One/Henry Creel/Vecna is Eleven’s father. While this is very reminiscent of The Empire Strikes Back, the Duffer Brothers have claimed numerous times to be fans of Star Wars. We know that Brenner is a monster, a man committed to creating and holding power through immoral scientific experiments. Henry Creel’s childhood is shown in season four, and watchers learn that he is also known as One—Brenner’s first experiment. In “Chapter Seven: The Hawkins Massacre,” Henry/One reveals that Brenner spent “years making more of me,” implying that there was an attempt to replicate his powers. Those powers are oddly similar to El’s, and when the two eventually face off, they seem to be equals in terms of that power. We are shown El’s mother, Terry Ives, who was experimented on while pregnant and had her baby stolen from her for experiments once she gave birth. But the question as to who El’s father could be is never answered, let alone brought up as a point of concern. The possibility that Brenner utilized artificial insemination in multiple experimental pregnancies as an attempt to transfer Henry’s powers. It is also discussed that Brenner used different kinds of psychedelic drugs on the mothers to alter these powers, which would explain why El’s powers differ from Kali’s. If this theory was true, it would be logical for Brenner to keep Henry around the children in the lab instead of just discarding him because, while the children don’t know it, there is a psychological trust and comfort to have their father be present during all of Brenner’s tests.
To say Stranger Things fans have been attentive to detail is an understatement. They have scoured every second of every new clip that is released, and unlike some theories that have arisen for other movies or shows, these have the evidence to make them plausible. Of course, this demonstrates the incredible writing abilities of the Duffer Brothers and their own fixation of the storyline they have created.