Stranger Things season 5 part 2 was slated to arrive on Christmas Day at 8 p.m. ET; however, it seems not every fan was able to enjoy the episodes as expected. This is because Netflix crashed once again on Christmas, leaving countless fans asking why wasn’t Stranger Things working as it should have been,
While some lucky fans were able to begin watching the new episodes promptly at 8 p.m., others reported extended outages which prevented them from viewing the new episodes. For some, the wait was short, with the episodes appearing and playing just a few minutes after 8 p.m. rolled around. However, for some unlucky fans, the episodes did not appear for over 25 minutes after they were intended to drop on Netflix.
Fans were quick to take to social media to vent about Stranger Things season 5 part 2 failing to load on their accounts, and they weren't alone as the crash impacted users across the globe.
The new stranger things episodes wont pop up 😭😭😭 pic.twitter.com/Q3k04xMRvo
— sleeping booty 👑 (@Cardii_E) December 26, 2025
oh HELL is netflix crashing or smth?? my family’s trying to play stranger things vol 2 but it literally won’t show the episode list 😭
— n ☁️ TTH ERA (@zhanclouds) December 26, 2025
Watching Netflix crash once again as stranger Things volume 2 premiere pic.twitter.com/tbPvmL4sKg
— pill of billl (@Igprincex89) December 26, 2025
Stranger things episodes aren’t coming up ! It’s been 15 minutes #strangerthings5 did Netflix crash?? Wtf!! #Netflix
— Francesca Champion (@Frances29029556) December 26, 2025
Thankfully, the issues seemed to resolve for most users within the first hour of the new episodes dropping. However, there was not much to feel thankful for in the households who were forced to wait beyond 8 p.m. to begin the episodes, especially after waiting all day for the episodes to arrive. And this isn't a one-off occasion.
Netflix crashed on November 26 when the first four episodes of season 5 arrived, with users across the world taking to social media to report outages. The hope was that after the crash on the night before Thanksgiving with part 1, Netflix would have worked to prevent another crash on Christmas Day. Instead, fans were once again unable to enjoy the episodes right away as advertised.
With the first two parts of the season causing Netflix to crash, there is now a growing fear that Netflix could experience an even more widespread outage on New Year's Eve. While some fans will be heading out to theaters to watch the series finale, millions more will be turning to Netflix to see how Stranger Things comes to a close.
We're expecting a record turnout for the series finale, which means that there is a very good chance Netflix will crash again. This time, though, there is a bigger chance that crash will impact even more users.
The Stranger Things series finale will be one of the biggest television events in the history of TV. There is no doubt that the episode will be among the most watched television events of all-time, and it's clear Netflix needs to make some changes to ensure fans are able to watch the episode on time.