Stranger Things comes to a conclusion in dramatic fashion on New Year’s Eve.
The series is no stranger (pun intended) to killing off characters in highly dramatic fashion from the heartbreaking loss of Hopper’s daughter, to Bob becoming demo dog food, to Dr. Brenner being gunned down in the desert, and Eddie’s heroic sacrifice in the Upside down.
Episode 7 “The Bridge” found our heroes packed into Murray’s cargo van, racing off to kill Vecna in the abyss. To quote Han Solo, “we’ve got a bad feeling about this.” (And by we, this writer means the collective fanbase of the series.) That bad feeling is that some of our heroes are not going to be coming home to Hawkins by series’ end.
This bad feeling has been fostered by breadcrumbs, hints, and foreshadowing The Duffer Brothers and company have left along the past five seasons. This of course has fueled the fire for theories — both logical and absolutely bonkers — from every writer, podcaster and YouTuber out there (we’re guilty of this as well).
So let’s get to it. Let’s predict who’s going to survive the series finale in our first (and last) Stranger Things Dead Pool. What’s a dead pool you may ask? It’s a very morbid game where you guess on who’s most likely to die, and you wager money on it. (And yes, this is where the Marvel character gets his name from).
Here’s our categories of likelihood of whether this character will die or not:
- Surfer Boy Safe: Argyle isn’t dying in this season, and neither is this character
- Running Up That Hill: It’s 50/50 for this character.
- Colder Than an Eggo: You’re as good as Barb.
We’ve listed the character in alphabetical order in order to keep things fair and interesting:
Derek Turnbow (Jake Connelly): Surfer Boy Safe — Y’all can suck a fat one, there’s no way this delightful dipshit gets killed off.
Dr. K (Linda Hamilton): Colder Than an Eggo — Linda Hamilton survived The Terminator, but she’s not surviving this series. Guaranteed she’s leading soldiers to the Upside Down, and ends up getting killed off.
Dustin Henderson (Gaten Matarazzo): Running up That Hill — They’re really leaning heavily into Dustin biting the big one. However, it feels like a “doth protest too much” situation where they’re talking about it so much that it won’t likely happen.
Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown): Colder Than an Eggo — It is with heavy heart that this pick is made. It’s a bold call that could easily be wrong, but let’s think about it. How does Eleven survive in the world after Vecna’s death? She’ll be hunted by governments around the world. She’ll always be in hiding. How can she have any semblance of a life? Unless she finds a way to hide out in an alternate dimension (don’t rule this out), she will likely sacrifice herself for the party (likely Mike).
Erica Sinclair (Priah Ferguson): Surfer Boy Safe — There’s no way the future President of the United States gets a hair harmed on her head.
Hawkins Kids: Running up That Hill — Those kids were really awful to Holly, and some of them scream “red shirt.” Not saying any of these kiddos deserve to join Barb, but don’t put it past The Duffers to knock off a few of these bambinos.
Henry Creel/Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower): Colder Than an Eggo — He’s the big bad, there’s no way he’s alive by series’ end. However, don’t be shocked if you find yourself shedding a tear at his death, as there’s going to be some sort of reveal that heaps a huge amount of sympathy on him.
Holly Wheeler (Nell Fisher): Surfer Boy Safe — This poor girl has been put through absolute hell and is the person our heroes are going to save. She will somehow get her a moment in the sun, helping the party defeat Vecna. She’s such a good character, and killing her off would stop the series.
Jim Hopper (David Harbour): Colder Than an Eggo — The 9 lives of Jim Hopper are coming to an end. He’s been able to survive a Russian prison, an explosion in the Starcourt Mall, getting shot in the Upside Down, fighting Russian assassins, surviving a herd of demo dogs, and Mike Wheeler being an annoying bastard. He’s not making it out this finale, however. He’s going to sacrifice himself to save Eleven, and it’s going to be a massive onion cutter.
Jonathan Byers (Charlie Heaton): Running up That Hill — One of the first people to tell Will that he’ll never leave him…that’s not good for ol’ Jonathan. He’s broken up with Nancy now. He doesn’t have much of a reason to stick around outside of serving as a source of further grief for Will.
Joyce Byers (Winona Ryder): Running Up That Hill — Joyce is likely on the safer side of the “maybe” crew. She was the first to say she’d never leave Will, which usually means “oh she’s dead.” However, Joyce’s role in the series seemingly is the person who’s meant to suffer. She’s going to watch Hopper die, potentially Jonathan, and maybe even Will. She actually might die of dehydration. She’s going to cry so much.
Kali/Eight (Linnea Berthelsen): Colder Than an Eggo — No one’s losing tears over this one. Kali was one of the least liked characters of Season 2, and her inclusion in the finale season was a nice bit of business at first, but has grown tired quickly. She has a pivotal role in El’s future, but ultimately, she will either take her own life, or get killed by the finale’s end.
Karen Wheeler (Cara Buono): Surfer Boy Safe — The perm will not die. Karen has gone through literal hell, and she’s been sidelined by hospital care. No way this bad ass mom dies.
Lt. Akers (Alex Breaux): Colder Than an Eggo — Classic “douchey military type” always bites the big one.
Lucas Sinclair (Caleb McLaughlin): Surfer Boy Safe — He’s been able to survive getting sliced up by a demogorgon, so I think he’s safe here. He’s likely going to take major damage in the final fight, but ultimately he makes it home to Max.
Max Mayfield (Sadie Sink): Surfer Boy Safe — Max is back in the real world, so she’s going to be just fine…physically. However, she’s going to watch a lot of friends die.
Mike Wheeler (Finn Wolfhard): Surfer Boy Safe — Mike, whether we like him or not, is the main character of the series. He’s not going to die.
Murray Bauman (Brett Gelman): Colder Than an Eggo — He will be the first of the group to go. Don’t be surprised if Murray took a couple of bullets from Dr. K, and he’s quietly bleeding out.
Nancy Wheeler (Natalia Dyer): Surfer Boy Safe — The entire Wheeler family is going to come out of this alive. Nancy is really living her best Rambo life, which will put her in danger multiple times, and she’s going to take a lot of damage (like last season). Jonathan or Steve could sacrifice themselves for her, but she’s going to make it.
Robin Buckley (Maya Hawke): Running Up That Hill — Robin has been one of the best characters in the series since she joined in Season 3. She’s been an integral emotional cog in the machine this season, and so vital to Will. If the series really wants to devastate us, Enzo’s dinner with Vickie becomes Stranger Things’ version of Steve and Peggy’s dance. Ugh, they really could do this.
Scott Clarke (Randy Havens): Surfer Boy Safe — Snookums will be a-okay and will return to the arms of the librarian in no time.
Steve Harrington (Joe Keery): Colder Than an Eggo — If there’s one death, above all, that will make the entire universe cry, it’s that of Steve “The Hair” Harrington. He’s our favorite babysitter. Our favorite knucklehead. Our favorite mom. He’s a warrior, and a hero and he’s going to protect his kids at all costs. It’ll likely be Dustin or Nancy whom he protects. Let’s start those prayer circles for Steve now.
Ted Wheeler (Joe Chrest): Surfer Boy Safe — He may have gotten thrashed by a Demogorgon, but we’ll be seeing Mr. Wheeler during the final scenes of the series.
Vickie Dunne (Amybeth McNulty): Surfer Boy Safe — As long as she’s at the hospital, she’s fine. Likely she’ll be one of the many Hawkins residents we see looking in fear as the Abyss and Hawkins collide.
Will Byers (Noah Schnapp): Running Up That Hill — The single toughest call. Will’s coming out speech was such a powerful, emotional moment. To kill him off would be cruel. But again we watched his hero, the pure spirit known as Bob get eaten by demo dogs. So, don’t put it past the Duffers. Like Eleven, the question of “What will Will do in the real world if he survives?” is a real thing. How can he live in this world with Vecna powers, or do they leave him … and he’s able to live his life (with Mike?) to the fullest.
