Vecna became one of the favorite villains of science fiction lovers, while the Hawkins gang became one of the public’s favorites after five seasons of Stranger Things. The series, which established itself as one of Netflix’s most successful productions, left its followers with doubts about Eleven’s true destiny.
After the final battle between Vecna and Hawkins’ gang in the Upside Down, and after managing to save the children she had kidnapped, the final episode of the fifth season showed how Eleven decides to return to the space that connects the Upside Down to Hawkins, which is about to collapse.
Before the closure of the series, which left fans with doubts about whether Eleven is alive, actress Millie Bobby Brown delved into the mystery of her character’s fate during her participation in Happy Sad Confused and highlighted that only three people know the true ending of Eleven.
The middle Variety Remember that in movies there is an unwritten rule: “A character is never really dead unless you see his body,” which has led some fans to think that Eleven is still alive.
For some users, the protagonist survived and had to leave Hawkins to avoid being followed while she waits to meet Mike Wheeler. For others, she did not survive and shared the same fate as Vecna. It was during his interview at Happy Sad Confused when he said that he does know what happened to his character, but that he cannot reveal it.
Millie Bobby Brown highlighted that, after the premiere of the final episode of the series, on December 31, 2025, brothers Matt and Ross Duffer sent her a message to remind her not to reveal the fate of her character.
As part of a promise, Millie Bobby Brown must not reveal the fate of her character to anyone, because, as she said, the creators told her: “Don’t tell anyone, because we made a kind of secret promise.”
«No one else knows. It’s just the three of us. And what we do with that information will be our decision,” Millie Bobby Brown highlighted during her participation in the program, according to Variety.
The actress confessed that, after the premiere, she also closely followed the reactions of the series’ followers and the fan theories. Furthermore, he revealed that not even his co-stars know the fate of his character.
I’d like to run back to the cave after this as well pic.twitter.com/0UkZKh7YTR
— stranger things (@Stranger_Things) December 27, 2025
The series’ open ending has divided the cast between those who believe Eleven died, like David Harbour, and those who think she’s still alive, like Noah Schnapp.
When pressed, Bobby Brown responded: “Now everyone asks me, ‘Do you think he survived?’ And, of course, I think so. I have to believe it, honestly; Otherwise, we will go through the same thing again in January.
The actress commented that, after the premiere of the fifth season, she went through a small depression, but over time she regained her optimism, since she had left more than ten years of her life behind.
Millie Bobby Brown says she fell into depression after Stranger Things ended and spent January calling the cast to mend any unresolved tensions:
“They probably thought I was crazy. I was like, ‘We’re still friends, right? Like, you’re not going to stop talking to me anymore?’ YO… pic.twitter.com/CoAe98NaDd
— Stranger Things Memes (@SThingsMeme) June 25, 2026