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Taking to his personal Instagram account yesterday (July 3), Ross Duffer confirmed that filming on the wildly popular Netflix show's final season had reached the halfway mark. In a caption accompanying the post, which comprised a behind-the-scenes (BTS) shot of its 100-plus cast and crew, and a BTS video of Mike Wheeler actor Finn Wolfhard, Duffer wrote: "Week 24. Happy halfway to the best cast and crew ever."
Principal photography began on Stranger Things' fifth and final season on January 8, which all but confirmed one of the best Netflix shows of all-time wouldn't make its grand return in 2024. And, with six months marking the midway point of season five's lengthy production, it'll be another 24 weeks before filming officially wraps on the highly anticipated project.
By the time its shooting schedule ends, Stranger Things season five will have taken 48 weeks (i.e. 11 months) to film in its entirety. It'll be a long time before it debuts on the world's best streaming service, too, with a protracted post-production phase necessary to add in its visual effects, soundtrack, automated dialog replacement, potential pick ups and/or reshoots, and edit the eight episodes that'll make up the series' last chapter.
That doesn't mean we can expect to see it next year, though. As I mentioned earlier, there'll be a very long post-production stage that'll not only require many months to complete, but also ensure that Stranger Things season five delivers a fittingly epic end to the incredibly successful franchise's main show. After all, none of us want the sci-fi horror-thriller series to go out with a whimper.
Putting my speculation hat on, then, I wouldn't be shocked if Stranger Things 5 doesn't land until early 2026. Sure, Netflix could decide to split the show's final season into two parts, just like it did with Stranger Things season four. That entry's two parts were released one month apart but, if season five's latter installments need more work, Netflix could opt to release season five part one once it's ready, and then deliver season five part two a few months down the line. Netflix will experiment with its new multi-month gap release schedule with Cobra Kai season six, which is not only launching in three parts, but will see a five month break between season six part one's arrival on July 18 and season six part two' on November 28 (a release date for part three hasn't been announced yet). So, by the time Stranger Things 5 rolls around, the streaming titan will have set a precedent for its new-look launch schedule.
As TechRadar's senior entertainment reporter, Tom covers all of the latest movies, TV shows, and streaming service news that you need to know about. You'll regularly find him writing about the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Star Wars, Netflix, Prime Video, Disney Plus, and many other topics of interest.
An NCTJ-accredited journalist, Tom also writes reviews, analytical articles, opinion pieces, and interview-led features on the biggest franchises, actors, directors and other industry leaders. You may see his quotes pop up in the odd official Marvel Studios video, too, such as this Moon Knight TV spot.
Away from work, Tom can be found checking out the latest video games, immersing himself in his favorite sporting pastime of football, reading the many unread books on his shelf, staying fit at the gym, and petting every dog he comes across.Got a scoop, interesting story, or an intriguing angle on the latest news in entertainment? Feel free to drop him a line.
After a season filled with shocking revelations, early exits and dramatic breakups, Love Is Blind's latest season came to an end, with the Oct. 13 finale of the Netflix reality series revealing the relationship statuses of its final two couples: Milton Johnson and Lydia Gonzalez and Izzy Zapata Jr. and Stacey Snyder. (Taylor Rue and Jared "JP" Pierce also got engaged in the pods, but Taylor ended their relationship during their trip to Mexico.)
After both matches experienced their share of highs and lows, Milton and Lydia and Izzy and Stacey made it to the altar. But congratulations and condolences were in order as only one couple actually went through with the wedding on Decision Day.
As for Stacy, she was thankful to Izzy for opening her up "emotionally," but she didn't feel 100 percent about their future. "Fairly certain isn't good enough for me to say yes for the rest of my life," she explained.
After getting off to a rocky start after it was revealed Lydia was in a relationship with Milton's pod-friend Uche Okoroha before the show began, the geology-loving pair were the only ones to make it through the experiment still in a relationship.
Despite Kwame's mother refusing to attend the wedding and his arguably inappropriate conversations with Micah, whom he also connected with in the pods, Kwame and Chelsea were one of the three couples to exchange vows at the end of season four.
During the reunion, Chelsea revealed she has since met her husband's mom and Kwame offered an apology to his wife and her family for his behavior, saying his talks with Micah were "not the best representation."
After asking Bliss for a second chance, the pair defied the odds (and Bliss' dad's wishes) and both said "I do" at the altar. (And, no, they did not sit it out, enjoying that all important first turn around the dance floor to Lee Ann Womack's "I Hope You Dance," the song that bonded them in the pods.)
But a month later, the couple announced that "we have decided to go our separate ways" amid allegations that SK had been unfaithful. In a joint statement shared on social media in November, SK and Raven said, "Due to on-going legal proceedings surrounding these allegations, we cannot provide additional details and ask that you please respect our privacy during this hard time. Thank you for following our love story and believing in us."
Fans watched with dismay as Jackie chose to give Josh Demas, the other man she connected with in the pods, a second chance, meeting up with him before ending her engagement to Marshall.
However, during the reunion, Jackie set the record straight on the timeline of events. "I broke up with Marshall before I met Josh at the coffee shop," she said. "It looks like I'm a cheater. I am not a cheater."
As for Marshall, he told E! that he briefly connected with fellow contestant Kacia Clark after the show. "We tried," Marshall explained, "But I wanted to just distance myself from all of that from that experience."
While Nancy was ready to get married in the season three finale episode, Bartise revealed he was not so confident in their relationship. The update did not sit well with Nancy's family, who unapologetically sounded off on Bartise.
Despite the drama, Bartise and Nancy have maintained an on-again, off-again friendship. "We've gone from being friends to being acquaintances," he told E!, "to being completely no communication back to friends."
The two never seemed to be on the same page during their courtship, resulting in several skirmishes. Though Zanab and Cole made it to the wedding altar, Zanab declared, "You have disrespected me. You have insulted me. You have critiqued me. And for what it is worth, you have single-handedly shattered my self-confidence."
"We were going through all these bumps, but we were working through things and finding smoother waters," he told E! News. "And so I was hoping that we would at least be able to continue after the wedding if we didn't get married on that day."
On why she ultimately chose to go through with the wedding, Colleen told E! News, "As soon as I saw him cry and snort, I was like, 'That's my man.' So I knew that I was going to say yes as soon as I saw him."
While Deepti revealed to E! News that she is now single, her brother and Shake have been feuding on Instagram."'Shake', bruh, you're a loser," Deepti's brother Sunny and his partner Hina Merchant Vempati wrote in a joint Instagram. "You minimized my sister's life by making some awful and cringeworthy comments about her."
"He texted me numerous times he wanted to leave midway through filming because he still had feelings for me after we saw each other for [the] first time since our breakup at the reunion show taping," she revealed on Instagram, adding that she "encouraged him to continue filming."
The two announced on Aug. 17, 2022 in a joint statement on Instagram, "After much thought, we're saddened to share that we have separated and will begin the process of divorcing. While we have love for each other, our lives are going in different directions, and that's okay. Coming to this decision was far from easy and we will always wish each other the absolute best."
While the pair confirmed their friendship had blossomed into a romance in the After the Altar spinoff, which debuted in September 2022, Kyle announced just days later that they had split in the time since the special was filmed.
But also, Lauren revealed in an interview with Elite Daily that they are still together. "Oh my God. We're so happy," she gushed. "It's just, like, every day we learn more and more about each other, and we honestly fall more and more in love with each other."
OK, if you thought these two were actually going to end up married at the end of this thing after their many, many struggles (the 10-year age difference, her being attracted to Barnett, Jessica not really being into Mark physically, etc., etc.), well...bless your naive little heart.
Since their failed wedding, with Jessica being the one to pull the plug (duh), Mark revealed to the New York Post in February 2020 that he had not spoken to Jessica since that day, though he had reached out at one point.
"I didn't hear back, but to me, it's just sending love out there," he said, adding the LIB experiment was still the "best" thing to happen to him. "Without Jessica, there would not be a Mark of today."
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