The Duffer Brothers confirm the fifth and final season will cover the timeline of the Broadway prequel but go back even further.

Stranger Things had to ‘block the Broadway show producers a lot’ to curb season 5 spoilers: ‘We go back even prior to that’

The Duffer Brothers confirm the fifth and final season will cover the timeline of the Broadway prequel but go back even further.

By Nick Romano

Nick Romano is a senior editor at ** with 15 years of journalism experience covering entertainment. His work previously appeared in *Vanity Fair*, Vulture, IGN, and more.

EW's editorial guidelines

October 30, 2025 4:18 p.m. ET

Leave a Comment

Henry Creel and Dr. Brenner of the 'Stranger Things' Broadway show; Vecna of 'Stranger Things' season 4. Credit: Manuel Harlan/Netflix, Steve Dietl/Netflix

The creators of *Stranger Things* have openly teased how the story of the Broadway production, subtitled *The First Shadow*, will tie into the show's fifth and final season. But the Duffer Brothers now share how they had to prevent the play's producers from including any material that might spoil too much of what they were already planning for TV.

"We really dive into Henry's backstory before he arrived at Hawkins lab," Matt Duffer tells ** in an interview with his brother, Ross Duffer. "We definitely explore more about Henry because so much of the show does revolve around Vecna and his relationship with Will [Noah Schnapp's character]."

Ross adds, "In this season, we go back even prior to that, and so the Broadway show sort of becomes this little connective tissue between the seasons itself."

Will (Noah Schnapp) and Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower) on 'Stranger Things 5'.

'Stranger Things 5' first look at Vecna 'rebuilt' and more Duffer secrets from trailer (exclusive)

'Stranger Things' theatrical release has been in the works since February (exclusive)

Matt clarifies you do not need to see *Stranger Things: The First Shadow* to enjoy and understand *Stranger Things* season 5, but it adds more context. "A lot of the stuff that's covered in the Broadway show is covered in the final season, as well," Matt says. "Actually we had to block the Broadway show producers a lot from putting in too much material that we were gonna have in season 5 because we did not want it to be too spoilery."

The four-time Tony Award-winning *Stranger Things: The First Shadow*, directed by Stephen Daldry and written by Kate Trefry, serves as a prequel to the events of the Netflix TV series. Set in the year 1959, the story follows a young Henry Creel as he arrives in Hawkins, Ind., with his family. It shows how the future Vecna/One fell on the radar of Dr. Martin Brenner and how the horrors in the town began to emerge.

Louis McCartney as Henry Creel in Broadway's 'Stranger Things: The First Shadow'.

Matthew Murphy; Evan Zimmerman

***Get your daily dose of entertainment news, celebrity updates, and what to watch with our EW Dispatch newsletter.***

Louis McCartney originated the role of Henry on the West End in London and Broadway in New York. Also featured prominently are younger versions of Joyce Maldonado, James Hopper, Jr., and Bob Newby.

*Stranger Things* season 5 will now pick up more than a year after the season 4 finale in the fall of 1987. Hawkins has been under military occupation due to the rifts that emerged, Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) is back in hiding from the government, and the gang is determined to find and destroy Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower) since the big bad seems to have gone off the grid.

The first four episodes of the final season will premiere on Netflix this Nov. 26, followed by the next three on Christmas Day. The two-hour series finale will then stream on the platform and release in select theaters across North America on New Year's Eve.

Original Article on Source

Source: “EW TV”