“Stranger Things” didn’t just return — it turned Netflix’s viewing records upside down with a record-breaking debut for Season 5. After a three-year wait, fans were eager to return to Hawkins for “one last adventure,” propelling the first batch of episodes to 59.6 million global views, the biggest premiere ever for an English-language Netflix series.
That milestone dethrones the previous record holder, “Wednesday” Season 1, which amassed 56 million views during its first four days. It also puts “Stranger Things” Season 5 just behind the two premiere-week juggernauts of seasons 2 and 3 of Korean-language series “Squid Game,” per Screen Rant.
In a statement celebrating the massive reception, creators Matt and Ross Duffer said:
“The sheer number of fans who have already watched Volume 1 is staggering — the response has been more than we ever could have dreamed. The show is now a decade old, and seeing the fanbase not only endure but continue to grow has been incredibly rewarding for us, the actors and the thousandds of artists who helped bring this story to life. We truly cannot thank everyone enough, and we are beyond excited to share Volume 2 — there’s so much more to come!"
Season 5’s debut marks a leap from the already groundbreaking premiere of Season 4 in 2022. At the same time, in 2022, Netflix measured viewership by total hours watched rather than view counts; Season 4’s 287 million hours translated to roughly 22 million views. Variety reports that Season 5’s premiere is up 171% by comparison, aided by a five-day counting window instead of the three-day window given to Season 4.
Even before Volume 1 dropped, the final season was already bending the Netflix charts. Anticipation pushed all four previous seasons of “Stranger Things” into Netflix’s Top 10 simultaneously — a first for any series. Once Season 5 dropped, Netflix saw five seasons of the same show charting at the same time: Season 5 at No. 1, followed by Season 1 at No. 3, Season 4 at No. 5, Season 2 at No. 6 and Season 3 at No. 8, setting yet another record, per Variety.
Season 5 will roll out in three parts. Volume 1, the first four episodes, premiered Nov. 26. Volume 2 arrives Christmas Day (Dec. 25) at 6 p.m. MST and Volume 3, the single-episode finale, will get a dual release — streaming on Netflix and playing in select theaters, as previously reported by Deseret News.