(Credits: Netflix)

Yes, you read that right. Eleven might actually die in the final season of Stranger Things.

We are about two months away from the release of volume one of the show, and hype is at an all-time high. Fans are gearing up for the last trip to Hawkins, and Netflix just poured fuel on the fire by dropping a brand-new video. It’s not a trailer, but it might be just as effective.

You see the cast, all the kids we’ve grown up with, and they are inviting us to rewatch the series with them before the big finale.

At first glance, it’s wholesome. Everyone is together, Vecna makes a creepy cameo as he shares a couch with Max, and in the background are Joyce’s iconic Christmas lights from season one (peak nostalgia). Yes, the very same ones she used to talk to Will in the Upside Down. But here is the thing: while the lights are shining behind everyone else, they are completely dark behind Eleven.

Now, if there is one thing we know about the Duffer brothers, it’s that they don’t do accidents. This is the show that hid entire story beats in mixtapes, wardrobe choices, and even how a camera lingers for half a second too long. Every detail is deliberate. So when Eleven is the only one in shadow, fans have a reason to panic. It won’t be wrong to say the stakes of her death are high.

The theory gaining traction is brutal but makes sense: Eleven’s death. From the very beginning, she has been the weapon, the protector, and the bridge between worlds. Every major battle in Hawkins has revolved around her. And if the Upside Down is ever going to be closed for good, it’s hard to imagine it happening without her paying the price.

It’s not just the dark lights either. In the video, every character sits paired with someone, except for Will and Eleven. Everyone else has a partner, a tether. Eleven doesn’t. Alone, in the dark. It’s symbolism, so on the nose it hurts. And even if we see Will being alone, there is no doubt about him being at stake, as he himself is a major contender for the race of death in Stranger Things.

Of course, this could be clever misdirection. The Duffers know how to play us, and this could just be their way of stirring panic. But if the lights really are foreshadowing, the final season might end with Eleven sacrificing herself to save the very people she finally learned to call family.

The rewatch clip itself is classic Stranger Things mischief. The cast jokes that Netflix has basically “locked them in the studio” until they finish binging all four seasons. They hand out rewatch tips like it’s a survival guide.

They are asking you to either pace yourself or go full 35-hour marathon, keep a scrunchie handy, maybe throw on a Walkman, and for God’s sake, stock up on tissues. Because yes, it’s going to hurt all over again.

They also tease the big feelings fans will relive: the Demogorgons, the Demo-dogs, even the bone-crunchy moments you can’t unsee. This is a reminder for us of why this show hits so hard. It’s all fun and meta, but when you notice Eleven sitting alone with the lights dead behind her, the tone shifts. Even in a playful promo, that image feels less like a joke and more like a warning.