Stranger Things 5: How Will the Upside Down Be Destroyed?

Let the right side up be restored.

We are ALMOST there! Stranger Things 5 releases next Wednesday, and due to this, my final episode prediction is here. The series finale is called The Rightside Up, which seems to imply that the Upside Down will be destroyed for good. That also seems like the best way to end the show. So, that said, here are eight predictions as to how the Upside Down may be destroyed in the final episode of Stranger Things.

8. Every Gate Is Closed By a Major Character

There are multiple gates open across Hawkins

Throughout the show, the Upside Down has always been accessed through a gate. Seasons one and two had the Hawkins Lab gate. Season three had the Russian gate. Season four had gates open every time Vecna killed someone, and it seems like season five will just have gates popping up left and right. I doubt that this will actually be the final way that the Upside Down is destroyed, but I do think closing the gates will be a major key on the way to destroying the Upside Down.

7. Will Stops It from Bleeding Into Hawkins

Will's connection to Vecna could be the key to it all

We've repeatedly seen in marketing and heard in interviews how important Will Byers will be in this season. I think the key to destroying the Upside Down may relate to him. He is one of two characters that has a true connection Vecna, and I think that makes it very likely that he will be the one to end the Upside Down for good. This show did start with his abduction, after all, so it would be poetic for it to end with him destroying the dimension that he was taken to in the first place.

6. It Isn't

Maybe Vecna is defeated but the Upside Down remains

There is almost no way season five ends without Vecna being killed or defeated in some way, but I guess I could see a way in which the Upside Down lives on. Now, I don't know how they'd explain this because of the hive mind and Vecna seemingly being in control of the Upside Down, but if they do want to continue with more Stranger Things stuff in the future after the show is over, I could see them leaving the Upside Down alive. I doubt that this is the outcome. But it's definitely not impossible.

5. Vecna Destroys the Mind Flayer

A redemptive arc for Henry Creel is not out of the question

I haven't seenThe First Shadow, but I do know the story, and it portrays Vecna as more of a sympathetic character who fell victim to the Mind Flayer. There is a chance that that is actually canon and Vecna isn't the final antagonist: the Mind Flayer might be. If they do incorporate The First Shadow into season five's story, I could see a way in which Vecna is redeemed and helps destroy the Mind Flayer. Do I want that? Probably not, to be honest. Vecna is a great, great villain and they have not hinted at any sort of redemption arc in the show, at least, so having him make some heroic sacrifice to destroy the Mind Flayer and the Upside Down would feel subversive in all the wrong ways.

4. Vecna's Death Destroys the Upside Down

Is the main villain the true king of the Upside Down?

I know this isn't the exact way that the Upside Down will get destroyed, but the easiest way to explain how it does end is with Vecna's death. We obviously know that Dimension X existed way before Vecna, but the Upside Down itself may be his creation. So, naturally, it is very possible that his death will result in the death of the Upside Down. I think there'd be more to it: it feels a little bit lazy to just say that Vecna dying will kill the Upside Down, but I think there's a way in which that could work.

3. Eleven and Will Combine Powers to Destroy It

If Will does have secret powers, maybe he and El can take it down together

Fans have been theorizing that Will may have powers since, like, the end of season one. If we are exploring his time in the Upside Down this season, it seems like the time to reveal that he does possess some sort of abilities. Who knows if they will be similar to Eleven's or not, but regardless, it seems as though they could truly team up and take the Upside Down down. This would just be awesome. Will having powers would be a great payoff to the whole series, and seeing him destroy the Upside Down with Eleven would be fantastic.

2. Will Severs His Connection to It and Dies With It

A heroic sacrifice seems very likely for Will

One of two major sacrifices that could destroy the Upside Down is obviously Will Byers. As we've talked about throughout basically this entire ranking, this season will focus heavily on Will, so his sacrifice seems like it could sever the connection. We know the the Upside Down is frozen on the day that Will was kidnapped, which seems to imply how important he might be to the endgame of this story. If he does become a spy, his final sacrifice could take down Vecna and the Upside Down.

1. Eleven Sacrifices Herself to Destroy It

A heroic sacrifice seems more likely for Eleven

To me, the other most likely sacrifice is slightly more likely. Eleven has been tied to the Upside Down and Vecna since before Will was kidnapped, and, despite her arc being her fitting into the real world, she still doesn't entirely belong. Her final epic moment could be her taking down Vecna and the Upside Down but overworking herself and dying in the process. That would be a very Iron Man-way to go out, and it would be a very cathartic and beautiful ending to the show. We will see in just over a month. Unbelievable.