Netflix’s hit show “Stranger Things” is officially back in production for its fifth and final season. The most recent installment of the series was released in two segments in May and July of 2022, and the soonest expected release date for the last season is early 2025, meaning there will be a several-year gap between the two seasons.
“Stranger Things” is no stranger to long spans in between releasing seasons. There was a two-year gap between the release of the second and third seasons, and another two years between seasons three and four. The first three seasons of the show would drop in their entirety on Netflix for viewers to immediately tear through, while the fourth season tried to pace viewers and build enthusiasm through a staggered release. But is this pattern of ubiquity of episodes followed by a dearth of content, truly a better model of content creation in the entertainment industry?
There are a few reasons why these seasons get so spaced out, which is understandable for a big-budget production such as “Stranger Things.” With elaborate sets and plotlines, it takes a lot of time to conduct the pre- and post-production that goes into the final product, and all of that CGI work doesn’t just happen with the snap of a finger. The gap also feels longer because there are often fewer episodes in premiere streaming shows in comparison to broadcast television, which often have 18 or 22-episode seasons spread throughout the year. This year’s show releases were also delayed by the writer and actor’s strikes that took place throughout 2023, which both ended last fall.
Showrunners or actors can also become more popular, crowding out their schedules and making it difficult to return to the original production. Millie Bobby Brown, who plays Eleven, is one of the main characters on “Stranger Things” and has been able to spin her success into multiple other projects, putting out two “Enola Holmes” movies and starring in the “Godzilla” franchise to boot. Shows can often be a victim of their own success, producing stars who are suddenly very in demand and subsequently, very hard to get back to work on the set.
This is a dynamic that can also frustrate those involved, such as Constance Wu who expressed her dismay when ABC renewed her show “Fresh Off The Boat” for a fifth season in 2019. She explained after a backlash to her complaints that it meant having to sacrifice other projects, and has delayed her work on other productions, such as another “Crazy Rich Asians” movie. Other shows such as “Euphoria” have seen similar dynamics with actors reaching even higher levels of acclaim, such as Jacob Elordi, who has gone off to star in “Priscilla” and “Saltburn” in the gap between season two and the planned third installment.
“Euphoria” and “Stranger Things” both share the distinction of having characters who are supposed to be teenagers in high school. When there are long stretches between seasons the actors naturally age and suddenly begin to look much older than their on-screen counterparts are supposed to be. Among the “Euphoria” cast Zendaya, Jacob Elordi and Sydney Sweeney will all be in their mid-to-late 20s when the third season begins production, while Alexa Demie is already in her early 30s. “Stranger Things” is experiencing a similar distance between the character and the actor’s age–as the cast will mostly be in their early 20s playing 14 year olds–making it difficult for the show to preserve continuity between seasons.
At the other end of the dynamic is the viewer, who is also impacted by the prolonged gaps in their favorite shows. Plotlines can turn fuzzy, with viewers struggling to remember exactly what happened in the previous season or why a certain character had been motivated to act a certain way. In the face of long absences, viewers can become disinterested or bored with a show, and simply ignore the release of the new season as it no longer appeals to them. This could present a problem for shows that take even longer to wrap up over their several seasons as the original demographic they targeted has aged out. A show that was meant for teenagers and written to appeal to them might not succeed to the same degree when the original fanbase is now in their mid-20s and has different interests.
While “Stranger Things” may be the exception to the rule, it is likely one of the last major shows that can successfully perform this feat and it’s likely other shows should be wary of replicating this trend to worse results.