The weeks are finally counting down until the fifth and final season of Stranger Things arrives for fans with a Netflix subscription, although viewers won’t get all eight episodes at once. The official trailer finally released for Stranger Things Season 5 complete with Eleven wreaking havoc and a scary moment between Will and Vecna, but I’m quite curious at this point about a character who’s been around from the start. She didn’t spend much time in the spotlight in the first four seasons, but she’s set for a bigger role this time around. That could mean very good or very bad things for young Holly Wheeler.
Holly Wheeler Was Recast
Holly’s first appearance in Stranger Things was actually the very first episode, and the third episode of the entire series was called “Holly, Jolly.” She’s appeared in every season since, but usually just as part of the Wheeler household. In the first four seasons, she was played by twins Anniston and Tinsley Price, but the role was recast for Season 5 with Nell Fisher playing the role. The recasting seems to suggest that fans will just have to roll with how old she’ll suddenly look in Season 5, because Holly’s role seems to be increased for the final season.
What would be the point of recasting a character if she’s just going to linger in the background as usual, especially when the actress looks older than Holly should be by Season 5? After all, only around four years have passed in-universe on Stranger Things even though the first season debuted nearly a decade ago for viewers. Before the early teasers and the official trailer revealed some shots of Holly, it was a safe bet that we’d probably get more of the youngest Wheeler with the new actress on board.
Netflix hasn’t held back in teasing that something wicked Holly’s way comes. In the video that accompanied the announcement that Season 5 will release in three parts timed to holidays, there’s a shot of a terrified Holly hugging Karen with her latest example of high-fashion ‘80s hair. Then, the Season 5 teaser has a shot of Holly and Karen seemingly desperately hiding from something underwater in the bathtub, which is still one of the scariest moments from that footage for me, as well as a shot of a dry Holly looking up at something in the Wheeler house.
And if that wasn’t enough, the official trailer has a shot of what looks like post-bathtub Holly running toward her mom, who’s trying to get up from the floor. It’s easy to miss between scenes of Eleven using her powers and Demogorgons attacking, but Ted is conspicuously absent, and I can only assume that neither Mike nor Nancy is home. If Nancy was in the house, she’d probably have her arsenal out to defend her mom and sister.
I’m actually more nervous for Ted and Karen than Holly since Stranger Things usually doesn’t kill off the youngest of the kids, but it looks like Holly is getting pushed into the spotlight only because very bad things are about to happen.
Wheeler Siblings Bonding = The Real End Of The World
If the footage of a terrified Holly with her mom while the Wheeler house is seemingly being attacked didn’t set off alarm bells, a new photo (seen above) absolutely does for me. Stranger Things spent four seasons not really doing much with Mike and Nancy as siblings, let alone showing either of the teens spending time with their younger sister.
In the photo, it looks like Mike has given Holly a Dungeons & Dragons figurine of her own, and the background makes me think that it’s in the Hawkins middle school. Based on Holly’s outfit, the scene likely takes place early in the day before whatever happens at the house.
Wheeler siblings actually bonding? Surely that can only mean the Duffer Brothers are trying to make us care more about Holly right before something awful happens, right? If there’s a scene of Mike and Nancy bonding with each other before their home is (presumably) attacked, I’ll really be nervous for the rest of the Wheelers.
Could More Screentime Be A Good Thing For Holly?
Maybe I shouldn’t assume the worst just because Wheeler siblings are actually sharing the screen with each other and Holly has been recast. The last time that a younger sister was promoted from a minor role to become a key character was when Erica joined the Scoops Troop. Sure, she was in mortal peril for most of her time with Dustin, Steve, and Robin, but she became part of the team rather than just collateral damage or a victim. Perhaps Holly will be the Erica of Season 5.
I’m not too optimistic about that in the wake of the official trailer with the shot of Holly trying to help Karen with Ted nowhere to be seen, though. While I’m not expecting her to be killed off, I’m also not going to get my heart set on her joining any of the teams. At this point, the best I might be able to hope for when it comes to Holly is that she’s not too traumatized. The Duffer Brothers did say that they expect viewers will cry in the finale, which could mean a lot of people crying in public since the finale is being screened in theaters as well as released streaming on Netflix.
It remains to be seen what will happen with Holly getting a more prominent role and how much of the Wheeler family will be left standing at the end of the final season, but at least the wait is finally almost over. Part 1 of Season 5 will release on Wednesday, November 26 at 8 p.m. EST, which is excellent news for those of us in the Eastern Standard Time zone.
Part 2 begins streaming on Thursday, December 25, while Part 3 – a.k.a. the series finale – hits Netflix and select theaters on Wednesday, December 31. There’s still time to rewatch the earlier seasons for a refresher ahead of the beginning of the end, with all four available streaming now on Netflix.
