Fans are convinced Netflix is secretly releasing a hidden Stranger Things Episode 9—and the theory has exploded across social media.
Over the last 10 years, there’s one fantasy show that has risen above all of the rest. I’m talking about Stranger Things, of course—the Netflix show that captivated the world. Recently, fans have created a conspiracy called Conformity Gate that suggests there is a mysterious Stranger Things Episode 9 finale that will come out today, on what is known as Orthodox Christmas.
Now, I’m a major fantasy and science fiction fan, and I’m all about creating wild conspiracies. I love the one called the Phantom Time Hypothesis that suggests a couple hundred years of history didn’t actually happen. I also feel there’s no question some of the UFO sightings (which are now called UAPs or Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena) did happen. (Fun side note here—the U.S. government used crash test dummies at one time and dropped a few of them from airplanes in the desert, which might be the one thing that started all of the conspiracies, according to one book author.)
Is Netflix releasing a secret Stranger Things Episode 9?
But I digress. Getting right to the point: There is no confirmed Stranger Things Episode 9, and Netflix has not announced a hidden finale. The theory is based on fan interpretation of visual clues and Easter eggs rather than any official evidence.
That said, I want to believe in what has come to be known as the Conformity Gate theory. Some of the Easter eggs and bold claims do sound believable at first glance. Spoiler alerts galore: For starters, I do think the show wrapped up the final season a little too easily, defeating Vecna after five seasons with a mere wisp of Eleven getting inside his head and then Joyce chopping it off completely.
Some of the theories I’ve read are that Vecna created the final episode as an illusion, that the characters did not actually ride off into the theoretical sunset, start families, and take up new occupations. Instead, he created a mirage of sorts, a whole new alternative universe. It’s one where the high school grads all wear orange (like they are in prison) and the crowd at the ceremony cross their arms like Vecna (including, as some have pointed out, the back row extras). It’s all a lie, as the conspiracy theory surmises. (Dictionary definition of that last word: suppose that something is true without having evidence to confirm it.)
But there is more evidence. In fact, the D&D books in a final scene of Episode 8 spell out the phrase “X A LIE” which might mean that Dimension X—the “world between worlds” in the series which is essentially another planet that’s distinct from The Upside Down, was on a collision course with our planet until Eleven intervened, and was the true home of Vecna.
Why Stranger Things Episode 9 became a conspiracy theory
I get it. I want to believe there is more to this fantasy world as well, that there are threads we have not pulled quite yet. I would not be surprised if Netflix resurrects the series at some point and makes an alternate ending, but I also have a theory about the theory.
None of us like to believe a fictional show has a finale, that there is complete closure to every detail.
And we are correct about that. Stories actually exist as a way to perpetuate the human experience, which is what separates us distinctly from other living creatures. Stories have been handed down from centuries because it is a way to have a common bond.
When that common bond occurs with a popular piece of fiction, from Star Wars to Stranger Things, we want to hold onto it.
Why fans don’t want Stranger Things to be over
More than anything, we just want the show to continue.
One of my favorite scenes in a movie has to do with handing down stories. Reign of Fire is not actually a great movie, but there’s a scene that’s worth mentioning. The movie came out in 2002 and was set in the “far future” of 2020 where people lived in a dystopian nightmare. Characters act out the scene with Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker like it is a legend from ancient times, even making the breathing sounds.
Fictional stories like that become part of our cultural identity, and I believe Stranger Things has entered that realm. There won’t be an Episode 9 anytime soon, of course, Netflix has capitalized on the hype machine enough, and the creators behind the series are ready to move on.
Fans of the series? Not so much. I expect there to be even more theories about the finale, Stranger Things Episode 9, and the show itself. We’ll see if that leads to any more actual, real, verified episodes coming out. Stranger Things may be over for now—but like any modern myth, the story doesn’t actually end when the screen goes black. It ends when fans refuse to stop talking about it.