The fifth and final season of Stranger Things can’t come soon enough! After production was impacted by the writers and actors' Strike in 2023, it was confirmed this past January that filming for Season 5 had begun. Now, as if we needed yet another reason to be excited for this final batch of episodes, The Shawshank Redemption’s Frank Darabont has been "dragged" out of retirement to direct some episodes, and I love his reasoning for joining the show.
While it'll be sad to say goodbye to one of Netflix’s best shows, I have a feeling Stranger Things’ fifth season is going to be special. I mean, Terminator icon Linda Hamilton is joining the cast, and fans have been promised that major story arcs will be resolved. So the notion of the man who directed one of the best Stephen King movies being in the mix just makes me all the more hyped. Frank Darabont is reportedly helming what The Daily Beast refers to as key installments of ST. Darabont explained to the outlet that he was personally a fan of the show, but his reason for joining is deeper than that:
What really dragged me out of retirement was that my wife and I really love this show. Our content now is so filled with horrible people doing horrible things for greedy reasons but Stranger Things has so much heart. That positivity is something I really responded to.
It must have been such an amazing opportunity for the Oscar nominee to direct episodes of a series that he and his wife love to watch. He absolutely makes a great point about Stranger Things having a lot of heart, too. Amid all the spectacle the Duffer Brothers' show provides, it keeps its characters at the forefront. It's the joy, sorrow and action they all experience that makes it so heartbreaking for fans whenever major ST character deaths occur, after all. I love that the Green Mile helmer can see the depths of the show.
Considering how inspirational The Shawshank Redemption is, it’s no wonder Frank Darabont is a fan of projects that are all about heart. Despite the prison drama being about an innocent man receiving a life sentence, it’s still an example of a highly rewatchable movie due to its strong messages about the presence of hope when it’s most needed. The budding friendship between Andy and Red also makes it sentimental. I wouldn’t be surprised if any of those feel-good themes fit into Darabont's Stranger Things episodes.
The Golden Globe-nominated filmmaker's last worked in TV when he directed episodes of the L.A. noir series Mob City that aired in 2013. As for whether the Walking Dead helmer will continue working after ST he told The Daily Beast, “Who knows?” As he admitted how much he missed being on set compared to the entertainment business as a whole, the director said he knows he’s still got time to decide on his career trajectory.
If Stranger Things can encourage a prominent director like Frank Darabont to come out of retirement due to having "so much heart", that speaks to the immense time and care that's gone into making the show. Should Darabont bring to the Emmy award-winning series what he brought to Shawshank, I have a feeling we’ll surely experience love, laughter and tears while watching his episodes.
The highly anticipated fifth and final season of Stranger Things is set to premiere sometime amid the 2025 TV schedule. In the meantime, fans can stream the first four seasons using a Netflix subscription.
