Stranger Things finale length just confirmed (and it’s massive)

It's crazy to think that one of Netflix's biggest shows is about to end soon. Stranger Things has been such a huge part of our lives for nearly a decade. Over the years, we’ve grown up with these characters. We’ve seen Mike, Dustin, Lucas, Will, and Eleven go from innocent kids riding their bikes through the woods to them taking on literal monsters from another dimension.

We’ve cried with them through loss, cheered for their victories, and laughed at their awkward teenage moments. And let’s not forget the unforgettable heroes who joined along the way. Steve, Robin, Max, Hopper, Joyce, and so many others have each brought something special to the story. And now, as the final season approaches, it feels bittersweet. We’re all eagerly waiting to see how this story ends. We want to see how the battle against the Upside Down and Vecna will play out, and what becomes of our favorite characters.

But deep down, it’s hard to imagine life without the show that has made us feel so deeply and laugh so freely. Sadly, we don't have a choice. The Stranger Things season 5 premiere is set for Nov. 26, and the date is quickly approaching. Since the release date is right around the corner, the Duffer Brothers (Stranger Things creators) have been opening up even more about what fans can expect from the show's last installment. And the most recent piece of information has everyone buzzing.

The Duffer Brothers reveal the Stranger Things series finale runtime

In a new interview with Variety, Matt Duffer stated that the Stranger Things finale isn’t going to be your standard episode. It's going to be pretty long, running "around two hours." That's basically a feature film! But honestly, no one should be surprised by this. The season 4 finale was 2 hours and 22 minutes long, so the Duffer Brothers have already shown they’re not afraid to go big when the story calls for it. With Stranger Things season 5 being the final chapter, it makes perfect sense that they’d give the series the epic, cinematic send-off it deserves.

However, it does make you wonder what Matt meant by "around two hours." Like what exactly counts as "around?" Are we talking the same length of the season 4 finale? 2 hours and 10 minutes? Or perhaps 2 hours and 30 minutes? I can't see the series finale being under the season 4 finale, given everything that needs to be wrapped up. But who knows? We'll just have to wait until the series finale drops on Dec. 31 to find out.

Besides the series finale runtime, we also know the official runtimes for the first four episodes of the season. Ross Duffer shared them on his Instagram page after rumors were swirling around that each episode would be over an hour long. Based on the length of one of the episodes, this rumor turned out to be false.

Here’s a detailed look at the episode runtimes:

• Episode 1: 1 hour 8 minutes
• Episode 2: 54 minutes
• Episode 3: 1 hour and 6 minutes
• Episode 4: 1 hour and 23 minutes

Here are some other juicy details about Stranger Things season 5 that were revealed in the Variety interview:

• Season 5 picks up 18 months after everything that happened in the fourth season.
• The fifth season will finally explain what the Upside Down is.
• The series finale will not receive a limited theatrical release.

Stranger Things season 5 premieres with its first batch of episodes on Netflix on Nov. 26, followed by volume 2 on Dec. 25, and the series finale on Dec. 31.