Stranger Things’ Biggest, Most Difficult Episode To Shoot Wasn’t The Netflix Series’ Finale

Season 4 of Stranger Things was a two-part spectacle. The reasons behind this split were practical, as the series’ creators were unable to present all nine episodes at once, opting for a climactic break instead. However, the fifth season of the hit Netflix show is all set to release three The first two volumes will be released on November 26 and December 25 respectively, with the saga’s final series concluding on December 31. This three-part division is a deliberate strategy to allow some breathing room between volumes one and two, since part one, containing four episodes, ends with an important emotional climax.

In the December 2025 issue of SFX Magazine, Ross Duffer talked about the challenges that came with the massive scope of Episode 4, and how the finale is supposed to be the most emotional chapter:

“I’m also excited for the first volume because, in Season 4, we didn’t know it was going to be split into two parts […] The first volume actually exists as its own blockbuster. It has its own climax. So episode four [titled ‘Sorcerer’] Very beautiful. It’s definitely the hardest thing we’ve done on a technical level. Episode 4 was the most challenging episode we’ve ever done, and that includes the ending – although the ending was the hardest emotionally. “I don’t know how many days I found myself crying, and I’m not someone who cries a lot outside of watching Pixar movies.”

It makes sense for the final season to be tear-jerking or embrace bittersweet feelings. The trailer for the show’s fifth season doesn’t paint a pretty picture of Hawkins, which automatically raises the stakes for every character involved.

The fourth episode of the previous season, “Dear Billy,” is great. It has all the distinctive narrative hallmarks that made “Stranger Things” such a sensation in the first place — a tightly woven, well-paced story with meaningful stakes, and whose emotional catharsis feels entirely sincere and deserved. While A a lot In this episode, the heart of this arc happens to be Max (Sadie Sink), who is very close to death.

The build-up to this moment is filled with sadness, as Max mourns Billy (Dacre Montgomery) while lamenting the life that could have been. What Max longs for is an ounce of normalcy: perhaps, if Billy hadn’t sacrificed himself to save everyone, he and Max might have come closer to becoming affectionate brothers one day. Maybe, just maybe, Max wouldn’t have had to be paralyzed by guilt and self-loathing, and would have experienced the highs and lows of adolescence like any other kid.

But this is Hawkins, and Vicna (Jamie Campbell Bower) is intent on killing Max, which is why Billie is supposed to show up to mock her grief. What happens next is a disorienting trip to the Upside Down, followed by a poignant rescue attempt by her friends, set to Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)” as Max makes a heroic escape. Season 5 may repeat a similar narrative turn in its fourth episode, but the stakes will be higher than ever, as the gang has one last chance to band together to defeat Vecna ​​once and for all.

Well, anything can happen in the final season. Although Max was lucky enough to be rescued in time in “Dear Billy,” the upcoming Episode 4 may not be as forgiving toward its core characters.