Barb. Superhero Bob. Eddie. Over the course of Stranger Things’ epic run, the Netflix smash has buried a graveyard’s worth of characters — and there’s no way in hell the Upside Down that the Duffer Brothers sci-fi/horror/comedy/drama is done yet.
As the start of the 1980s-set series’ fifth and final season crawls ever so slowly closer — it’s not expected to drop until 2025 — so, presumably, does the end for more of our favorite residents of Hawkins, Ind. Which will suit some folks fine. “They need to kill off some people,” Millie Bobby Brown (Eleven) has said. “We need to have the mindset of Game of Thrones.”
But for the rest of us, it’s sure to be heart-wrenching. The show has proven time and time again that, no matter how adorable they are, no one is safe. (Isn’t that right, Alexei?) So about whom do we need to be the most worried?
As it happens, TVLine has given that question some thought — a good deal of thought, as a matter of fact. On the flip side of our analysis, we can reassure you that at least a few characters are (probably) safe while a few others are… eh, let’s just say that it’s for the best that Stranger Things won’t be getting a traditional spinoff, because the odds are pretty lousy that they’ll be around to make a cameo.
Read on for the chances of El, Jim Hopper, Max Mayfield and more meeting their maker before the closing credits roll. Then hit the comments with the names of the characters you suspect are doomed.
Chances of dying: 0%. Why she isn’t likely to survive: Um, there aren’t any reasons that she wouldn’t make it through and a zillion reasons that she must. Why she is likely to survive: On one hand, there’s Joyce’s long-time-coming relationship with Hop. On the other, there’s the faint hope that she will ever again look at Christmas lights the same way. But any way you slice it, the end of Stranger Things will not be the end of Winona Ryder’s beleaguered character.
Chances of dying: .01%. Why she isn’t likely to survive: Robin’s only in danger because this is Stranger Things, so everyone is in danger. Why she is likely to survive: Season 4 made it pretty clear that the Duffers are more interested in giving Maya Hawke’s character a love life than taking away her life-life. It wouldn’t make sense for them to have spent all that time setting her up with crush Vickie, only to have their flirtation begin and end with PB&Js.
Chances of dying: 3%. Why she isn’t likely to survive: The aspiring reporter is so fearless in the face of danger that she could wind up prematurely writing her own obituary. Why she is likely to survive: Since Natalia Dyer’s alter ego is at the center of the Jonathan/Nancy/Steve love triangle, she kinda has to make it out of the imminent fracas alive, if only so we’ll know with whom her character ends up.
Chances of dying: 5%. Why he isn’t likely to survive: In Season 5, Hawkins’ Chief of Police is going to be in the most dangerous place that there is: on the frontlines in the battle to defeat Vecna and save humanity. Why he is likely to survive: We’ve waited too long for Hop and Joyce to live happily ever after to be denied. Also, killing David Harbour’s alter ego would be way too “been there, done that” after Stranger Things faked us out with his demise in Season 3’s finale.
Chances of dying: 7%. Why she isn’t likely to survive: Now that Lucas’ kid sister is a full-fledged member of the gang, she runs as great a risk as they all do of having their bones broken and eyes gouged out by Vecna. Why she is likely to survive: Priah Ferguson’s take-no-prisoners alter ego has already pulled through Operation Child Endangerment. In addition, if Vecna dared to threaten her, she could unleash the secret weapon that none of her friends possess in the same quantity that she does: attitude.
Chances of dying: 11%. Why she isn’t likely to survive: As it is, following her face-off with Vecna in Season 4’s finale, “Mad Max” is “not really alive,” Ross Duffer has said, “in the sense that you and I think of alive.” Why she is likely to survive: If she’s not really alive in the sense that we think of alive, it stands to reason that she’s also not dead in the sense that we think of dead. Plus, to kill-kill Sadie Sink’s spunky counterpart when she’s already knock, knock, knocking on heaven’s door would be hella anticlimactic.
Chances of dying: 17%. Why he isn’t likely to survive: Hell-bent on avenging buddy Eddie Munson, Dustin will be coming into Season 5 eager — perhaps overeager — to take down Vecna in the ultimate David-and-Goliath face-off. Such intensity could lead to life-threatening, even life-shortening, carelessness. Why he is likely to survive: It wouldn’t be inspiring but merely horrifying if Dustin wound up meeting the same fate as the Hellfire Club’s Dungeon Master.
Chances of dying: 25%. Why he isn’t likely to survive: Ross Duffer has said that Noah Schnapp’s character will be at “center stage” in the intensifying conflict with Vecna. And since the teenager’s psychic connection to the erstwhile Henry Creel remains intact, it makes him a unique threat that the villain naturally will want to eliminate. Why he is likely to survive: The Duffer Brothers revealed Will’s sexual orientation so gradually and carefully that it’s hard impossible to believe that in the series’ final act, they’d fall into the bury-your-gays trope.
Chances of dying: 32%. Why he isn’t likely to survive: While we suspect that a miracle is in store for Max, it could come at a terrible cost — the life of her on-again/off-again boyfriend. To get her out of harm’s way, Lucas would be (perhaps foolishly) quick to put himself in it. Why he is likely to survive: If Caleb McLaughlin’s on-screen counterpart manages to save his sweetheart and they still don’t get to be together, it will feel like the last thing that the Duffers could possibly want: a ripoff instead of a payoff.
Chances of dying: 38%. Why he isn’t likely to survive: Stranger Things made a point of noting over and over again in Season 4 that Finn Wolfhard’s character is the heart of the group. So what better way to break our hearts than by stopping his from beating? Why he is likely to survive: Mike has a powerful protector in girlfriend El. That’s not a guarantee of safety — just ask her pal, Max — but it sure doesn’t hurt.
Chances of dying: 40%. Why he isn’t likely to survive: Steve is on borrowed time as it is. The Duffers had planned to kill off the jock-jerk character in Season 1 until Joe Keery’s performance opened their eyes to his potential for redemption. At this point, Steve’s death would crush Dustin, Robin, Nancy… everybody, including us! Why he is likely to survive: When Netflix put up a “Protect Steve” billboard ahead of Season 4, Part 2, fans didn’t just panic, they revolted. So in the end, we predict that not a hair on his well-coiffed head will be harmed. We can’t say that about his romantic rival, however.
Chances of dying: 62%. Why he isn’t likely to survive: Over the course of Stranger Things’ going-on-five seasons, the rooting value has switched from Charlie Heaton’s character and Nancy to Nancy and her ex, Steve. Killing Jonathan would pave the way for the former lovers to reunite even as it devastates Will, Joyce and the audience. (Just… not as much as Steve’s demise would devastate us.) Why he is likely to survive: The Duffers could zag when we expect them to zig, flip the script and have Steve suffer a mortal injury while protecting Nancy. We can see the heartbreaking scene now. With his dying breath, Steve makes Jonathan promise to be the man for Nancy that he wished he’d been when he had the chance.
Chances of dying: 50%. Why she isn’t likely to survive: To stop a Big Bad as ginormous as Vecna, a massive sacrifice will have to be made. Would any one be more impactful than having the erstwhile Jane Ives die a hero’s death? As eager as portrayer Brown is to put her star-making role in rearview, she’d likely be all for it. Stranger Things is “preventing me from creating stories that I’m passionate about,” she said in 2023. “So I’m ready to say, ‘Thank you and goodbye.’” Why she is likely to survive: Hopper has already lost one daughter. Neither the fates nor the Duffers would be so cruel as to take a second one from him… would they?
Chances of dying: 72%. Why he isn’t likely to survive: Some things, not even karate can protect ya from. And the former investigative journalist is exactly the kind of supporting character that Stranger Things loves to kill off. (See also: Barb, Alexei, Chrissy… ). Why he is likely to survive: Since Season 2, Brett Gelman has served up such standout comic relief that, somewhere down the line, we could imagine the Duffers building a second spinoff around the scene-stealing character.
Chances of dying: 99%. Why he isn’t likely to survive: Nope. There’s no coming back from the havoc that Vecna has wrought. His mind is as warped as his body is twisted. The only way to ensure Hawkins’ safety — and the world’s — is his elimination. Why he is likely to survive: Jamie Campbell Bower is such a skillful actor that, if the Duffers leaned on One’s mistreatment by Dr. Martin Brenner, we might be convinced that… Nah. The overlord of the Upside Down needs to be turned inside out.
Even though there’s a good chance of it, I really hope the series doesn’t end with El being killed off. It’d be a horrible downer of an ending for both Mike and Hopper, and no matter what Millie says or thinks right now, she WILL want to reprise that character eventually. She will miss the attention.
It started with Will, it’s going to end with Will. If anyone doesn’t make it, it’s going to be him. He’s connected with the Upside Down the way no one else is
While true. He’s my fave and I really do not want him to die. And I really agree with the author that it would be too cheap to kill one of like two gay characters in the whole series, especially when they gave his sexuality some room to exist this last season. I think, and what I hope will happen is that Will will be the one to actually kill the bad guy and not Eleven, or its them together.
#JusticeForBarb :)
This list bases many of its rankings on the notion of characters surviving to end up with their respective love interests. But their chances worsen when you consider the possibility of lovers dying poignantly at each other’s side. A tragic payoff is still a payoff of sorts.
Joyce and Hopper could die to protect the kids, or Nancy could fall alongside one or even both of her guys while holding the line during a big attack.
I really love the show but at this point everyone will die of old age before the last season airs. Not dogging the show just want it out already.
So many ridiculous comments
I’d gladly kill them all off. This hype has gotten tired a long long time ago