The Duffer Brothers Explain Why That Finale “Death” Was Always Going To Happen

One death—or possible death—in the Stranger Things finale has proven to be especially heartbreaking, but it turns out the Duffer Brothersalways intended for that character’s story to end that way (or, at least, close to that way).

SPOILER—This post includes spoilers from the Stranger Thingsfinale.

Perhaps the biggest shock of the Stranger Things ending was the reveal that Eleven didn’t get a happily ever after along with the rest of the group. In fact, the end of the show left El’s fate ambiguous, although there are really only two possibilities. Eleven either died when the Upside Down was destroyed, or she escaped and will live a life separate from her friends and family, with many of them assuming she died.

While some fans believe there’s proof she’s alive, the truth is, the Duffer Brothers wanted the ending to be open to interpretation. That doesn’t mean this ending for Eleven was unplanned or unintentional, though. On the contrary, this ending for Eleven has always been on the cards, and it had a much deeper meaning.

Speaking with Netflix’s Tudum, the Duffers explained that El was always meant to represent the magic of childhood, and given that Stranger Things was ultimately about the group letting go of childhood and moving into adulthood, Eleven was never going to end up with all of them in the end.

“There was never a version of the story where Eleven was hanging out with the gang at the end. For us and our writers, we didn’t want to take her powers away. She represents magic in a lot of ways and the magic of childhood. For our characters to move on and for the story of Hawkins and the Upside Down to come to a close, Eleven had to go away,” Ross Duffer explained.

On a practical level, there was also never going to be a way for everyone to move forward if El stayed in Hawkins and/or stayed connected to her friends and family. Because of her powers, and the government’s obsession with her as a result, no one would ever have been able to relax, and no one would have ever had a normal life—least of all El. Mike’s belief in the contrary was only ever a fantasy, as sad as that is.

Matt Duffer said, “What we wanted to do was confront the reality of what her situation was after all of this and how could she live a normal life. These are the questions that we’ve been posing this season that Hopper just doesn’t even want to think or talk about. Mike’s obviously talked about it a lot, but it’s sort of this fantasy version that would never work.”

He added, “And the reality is, if Eleven is out there, the most that they could hope for is a belief that it’s true because they can’t be in contact with her. Everything falls apart if that were the case. So if that’s the narrative, this is really the best way to keep her alive. And it’s about Mike and everyone finding a way to move past what’s happened.”

As devastating as it is, the Duffers’ logic for El’s conclusion holds up. Mike, Hopper and the rest of the group undoubtedly would have chosen to continue living a life of uncertainty and secrets to keep Eleven, but in the end, she made a choice that gave them a chance at a “normal” future. Whether that was actual death or a faked death, audiences will presumably never know.