Stranger Things season 5 officially begins production at Netflix

Hard to believe, but it's been almost a year and a half since Stranger Things season 4 premiered on Netflix. How have things been in Hawkins, Indiana since Vecna's initiated his master plan to unleash the monsters of the Upside Down on the world?

Well, we don't quite know, since the standoff between studios, writers and actors that led to last year's Hollywood labor strikes resulted in a delay for the production. But at long last, work on Stranger Things season 5 is moving ahead! Netflix announced as much today with a behind-the-scenes photo showing the cast back together with creators Matt and Ross Duffer:

"THIS IS A CODE RED," Netflix wrote. "Stranger Things 5 production has officially begun!"

The picture shows pretty much the entire main cast hanging out in a comfy-looking room with the Duffer Brothers, with a big light up number 5 on the wall. Best guess is that this was a first meeting of the season or a table read, since a few cast members like Finn Wolfhard (Mike Wheeler) are holding what look like scripts. Well, a table read minus the table. You get the idea.

A few things of particular note from the picture: series newcomer Linda Hamilton (The Terminator) is there, hidden near the back. It's exciting to see the science fiction veteran mixing it up with the rest of the cast.

There are also a couple of notable absences, namely Paul Reiser (Doctor Owens) and Eduardo Franco (Argyle). Owens' fate was left in question in the penultimate episode of Stranger Things 4, but Argyle made it clear through to the end. Maybe he decided to stay in California rather than get even more mixed up in the Hawkins apocalypse?

Stranger Things 5 production is expected to last most of this year, which means we'll probably be watching it sometime in 2025 at the earliest. It just now occurs to me, that's also the year we're expecting to see The Witcher season 4, which is due to begin production this March. 2025 could be a big year for Netflix.

To stay up to date on everything fantasy, science fiction, and WiC, follow our all-encompassing Facebook page and sign up for our exclusive newsletter.

Get HBO, Starz, Showtime and MORE for FREE with a no-risk, 7-day free trial of Amazon Channels