Stranger Things 5 hype is already breaking records, but are fans actually still into it?

Stranger Things is back (well, almost), and it is already rewriting the streaming rulebook, at least, according to Netflix. The final season, set to hit screens this November, just racked up a jaw-dropping 250 million impressions on Netflix’s socials in just four days. That’s more than any other show announcement in platform history. Insane, right?

Stranger Things 5 hype is already breaking records | Credit: Netflix

Stranger Things 5 is breaking records before it even drops, but is the hype real?

But not everyone is buying the Upside Down hype. While the numbers are objectively wild, some fans are starting to question if the excitement is still genuine, or if Netflix is simply winning the marketing game and juicing algorithms for maximum clout.

Stranger Things 5 hype is already breaking records | Credit: Netflix

A long wait, a three-part drop, and a lot of raised eyebrows

The announcement came during Netflix’s Tudum event in LA, where it was revealed that Stranger Things 5 will be released in three parts — four episodes on 26 November, three more on Christmas Day, and a final goodbye on 31 December. New Year’s Eve with Vecna? Sure. But it is been over four years since Season 4.

Stranger Things 5 hype is already breaking records | Credit: Netflix

Some longtime fans are thrilled. Others? Not so much. Reddit threads and TikTok comments are loaded with a mix of "finally!" and "do we even care anymore?" The wait has been brutal, and some viewers feel like the momentum has flatlined.

Stranger Things 5 hype is already breaking records | Credit: Netflix

The story so far, but is it still gripping?

Season 5 picks up in the fall of 1987, with Hawkins in pieces after the Rift disaster. The town’s in quarantine, the military is sniffing around for Eleven, and Vecna is MIA, but definitely not gone. The stakes are higher, the darkness is deeper, and the full cast is back for one last ride.

Sounds epic on paper, sure. But let’s be real, after years of delays, cast ageing out of their roles, and the explosion of other breakout shows (hello, The Last of Us), Stranger Things has a lot to prove. Is the finale going to live up to its legacy… or collapse under the weight of its own hype?