The final season of Stranger Things is a huge moment in pop culture. After nearly ten years, the show wrapped up its run, and viewers noticed how much the young actors had grown up. Releasing episodes on Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Eve broke streaming records, and many scenes from the season have already become popular memes and viral clips online.
No one – not even dedicated fans or industry experts – anticipated the massive scale of the final episode of Stranger Things. The episode had a budget and production value comparable to a major movie, and it featured two incredibly iconic songs that most shows or films couldn’t afford to use.
Stranger Things Final Episode Shocked the World With Its Prince Needle Drops
The final episode of Stranger Things Season 5, “The Rightside Up,” featured a last desperate attempt by the Hawkins group to defeat Henry Creel, also known as Vecna (played by Jamie Campbell Bower). Their plan involved two main parts: the older and younger kids ventured into Vecna’s base in the Upside Down to save the children he’d captured, while Eleven, her sister Kali, and Hopper remained behind. They worked to destroy the connection between Earth and the Upside Down with bombs, as Eleven mentally battled Vecna from within a sensory deprivation tank.
The plan succeeds: Vecna is defeated, and everyone from the Hawkins group makes it out of the Upside Down just before it collapses. As they escape, it’s revealed that Murray Bauman, Hopper’s unusual friend and a smuggler, had planted bombs with a timer. These bombs were set to explode after a few songs on Prince’s Purple Rain album finished playing.
As the Hawkins crew races back to the portal, Prince’s “When Doves Cry” plays in the background. But Dr. Kay, a determined military doctor, is waiting with her team, hoping to capture the group and use Eleven’s blood to create psychic soldiers. However, her plan is foiled when everyone discovers Eleven has already escaped. Mike sees her at the portal, preparing to sacrifice herself to protect the world from another threat like Henry Creel. Their emotional goodbye on the psychic plane is set to “Purple Rain,” a song accompanied by a montage of their journey from the first season to the present.
Why “Purple Rain” Is a Bigger Easter Egg Than Fans Think
Prince explained that “Purple Rain” represents a feeling of apocalyptic finality, like the world is coming to an end. He described the imagery of “blood in the sky” blending red and blue to create purple, and said the song is about facing that end with the person you love, guided by faith and God.
The song’s message clearly represents the contrast between the normal world (represented by the blue sky) and the dangerous Upside Down (the red sky). When the song speaks of a world ending, it’s referring to the destruction of the Upside Down by the bombs set off by the Hawkins group. Eleven, by staying in the opening between worlds, appears to be sacrificing herself and chooses to spend her last moments with Mike – a parallel to the song’s portrayal of a heartbreaking love story unfolding as everything ends.
Be warned, major spoilers ahead! The ending of Prince’s song, about letting faith guide you through difficult times, mirrors a key revelation in Stranger Things: Eleven might not actually be dead. It’s suggested she used her powers, possibly with Kali’s help, to create the illusion of death and escape to live a normal life in the real world. Ultimately, Mike is left to believe she’s safe and happy, even without concrete proof.
Considering how heartbreaking Mike and Eleven’s breakup is, “Purple Rain” perfectly captures the emotion of their final farewell.
The Significance of Prince’s Music In Stranger Things, Explained
It’s surprising that many of the viewers who consider Stranger Things a defining show of their generation likely aren’t familiar with Prince or his incredible music. Even so, Prince remains one of the most important musicians of recent times, and people are still discovering, discussing, and enjoying his work almost a decade after he passed away in April 2016.
Released in 1984, Purple Rain was a groundbreaking project that helped elevate Prince to even greater fame. He envisioned a feature film, and Warner Bros. created a semi-autobiographical movie that blended romance, rock music, and drama. The film was accompanied by Prince’s sixth studio album, which served as both a concept album and a soundtrack. The album featured some of his biggest hits, including “Let’s Go Crazy,” “Darling Nikki,” the iconic title track “Purple Rain,” and the hugely popular “When Doves Cry” – songs that have since gained even more recognition, notably through their use in shows like Stranger Things.
The combination of the Purple Rain movie and its music was groundbreaking for Prince, making him the first artist to simultaneously have the number one movie, album, and single. Although the film itself became a beloved classic, the soundtrack was the bigger success, earning an Academy Award for Best Original Song Score and two Grammys: one for Best Rock Performance and another for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media.
Since Prince’s death in 2016, his estate has been very careful about allowing his music to be used in movies or commercials. The show Stranger Things is the first TV show or film to feature “Purple Rain” since the original Purple Rain movie came out. The show’s creators, the Duffer Brothers, knew how important it was to get permission from the Prince estate and wanted to make the most of the opportunity.
How Stranger Things‘ Creators Got Prince’s Music in the Show
When the team decided the record would be the key to setting off the bomb, they knew they needed a really powerful song to accompany the scene. According to Ross Duffer in an interview with Netflix’s Tudum, Prince was the perfect choice – there’s really nothing more iconic.
The really exciting thing is that the song hasn’t been used much before. Prince’s estate rarely allows it to be licensed for anything outside of the Purple Rain film, he explained.
It appears the success of Stranger Things Season 4 prompted a change in Prince’s estate’s licensing approach. The season notably featured Kate Bush’s 1983 song, “Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God),” as a key part of the plot. This led to the song, which hadn’t been widely heard in over three decades, becoming a global streaming sensation almost immediately.
Prince’s estate agreed to work with Netflix and the creators of the show because they believed it would re-introduce his music to longtime fans and attract new ones.
It appears the decision to feature Prince’s music in Stranger Things was a success. Variety reports that streams of “Purple Rain” on Spotify have jumped by 243
I’m still reeling from the end of Stranger Things! It’s all available to watch on Netflix, and I’ve been chatting about it with other fans over on the ComicBook Forum – seriously, you should come join the discussion if you’ve finished it too!
Read More
- Best Controller Settings for ARC Raiders
- Ashes of Creation Rogue Guide for Beginners
- Meet the cast of Mighty Nein: Every Critical Role character explained
- Bloober Team launches ‘Remosd Neul Serorehso Ovam Ceyerd’ countdown website
- Arc Raiders Guide – All Workbenches And How To Upgrade Them
- Avengers: Doomsday Finally Gives The X-Men What Fox Refused To
- 7 Fantasy Movies That Aged Incredibly Poorly
- Kit Keenan Slams Claim Mom Cynthia Rowley Helped Buy Her NYC Apartment
- 7 Best Animated Horror TV Shows
- Star Wars Has Never Shown the Empire’s Most Terrifying Tactic
2026-01-03 02:13