The journey for the Hawkins crew is nearing its climax. Eager to dive deeper into the penultimate chapter of Season 5 and prepare for the series’ ultimate showdown? Watch our video above to brace yourself for the final confrontation with Vecna, portrayed by Jamie Campbell Bower.

In “Chapter Seven: The Bridge,” Will Byers, played by Noah Schnapp, steps into his destined role as the group’s leader. Before he can face the Upside Down’s terror and attempt to save Holly Wheeler (Nell Fisher) and her classmates, he makes a pivotal revelation. Gathering his friends, Will discloses that Vecna has been haunting him with terrifying visions, trying to keep him silent about a secret he’s been carrying. Courageously, he comes out to his friends, sharing that he is gay and admitting his feelings for Mike Wheeler (Finn Wolfhard). The group responds with love and support, empowering Will to continue his vital role in their mission.

Meanwhile, in Vecna’s domain—where earlier in Season 5, Volume 1, he deceived all but Holly into trusting his facade as Mr. Whatsit—he orchestrates a sinister séance. Vecna aims to implode the wormhole, threatening to merge his realm with the real world. Despite Holly’s attempts to flee, she and the other eleven children are drawn into his collective, potentially sealing Hawkins’ fate.

Elsewhere, Eleven, portrayed by Millie Bobby Brown, grapples with the possibility of a bleak future. Kali, played by Linnea Berthelsen, proposes they remain in the abyss after Vecna’s defeat. As the bridge detonates, they could remain behind, embracing eternity away from the oppressive forces that have pursued them, seeking to exploit their powers for creating psychic prodigies. Kali, subjected to horrendous experiments, sees this as their best escape. Will Eleven choose self-sacrifice, or is survival still an option?

Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown), meanwhile, is grappling with the knowledge that there might not be a happy ending lying in wait for her. Kali (Linnea Berthelsen) suggests to her that they stay in the abyss after Vecna is defeated. When the bridge blows up, the two of them will go up with it, staying on the opposite side of the wormhole and peacefully entering eternity. It would end a lifetime of being pursued by wicked authority figures and being used for their genetic materials to create yet another generation of psychic child soldiers. Kali — who has been used as a guinea pig, her blood being injected into a variety of pregnant victims — sees no possible better ending for them both. Will El sacrifice herself? Or will she survive?

Elsewhere, Jonathan (Charlie Heaton) and Nancy (Natalia Dyer) finally split up as a couple and — after their best-broship suffered some major wear and tear — Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo) and Steve (Joe Keery) make up and vow that if one of them dies, the other will follow. Can Will Byers’ newfound powers change everything – enough to save the world? Who will live and who will become a memory thanks to the wrath of Vecna? Watch the video above and prepare to find out when the final episode of “Stranger Things” hits Netflix on New Year’s Eve 2025.