Stranger Things season 5 has confirmed Max Mayfield's fate after she was brutally attacked by Vecna at the end of the previous series.
15:42, 27 Nov 2025
*WARNING: This article contains spoilers for Stranger Things 5.*
The final instalment of Stranger Things has been one of the most hotly anticipated Netflix releases this year, and after a long wait fans have finally learnt what happens to Max Mayfield.
The cult-favourite series is set for its last hurrah as Eleven (portrayed by Millie Bobby Brown) and her band of heroes in Hawkins, Indiana, unite to try and vanquish Vecna once and for all.
At the conclusion of season four, Max (played by Sadie Sink) slipped into a coma following a brutal attack by Vecna.
After the near-fatal assault at the close of Season 4, which resulted in Max's limbs being shattered, complete blindness, and death for about a minute - her heart was restarted after she was rescued by Eleven.
Fans were left devastated when it was revealed that Max had lost consciousness and was trapped in a comatose state, which remained the case at the beginning of the new season.
While Max continued in her coma, she is alive and aware within Henry Creel's mindscape.
In this reality, Max is able to act independently and is seen navigating the woods as she embarks on a mission to dismantle the system he controls, reports the Mirror US.
Max's presence inside this mindscape is one of the key plotlines of the new Stranger Things season as she is the only one who can make a difference from within.
In this alternative reality, Max joins forces with Holly Wheeler (the younger sibling of Mike and Nancy, and Ted and Karen Wheeler's daughter), who finds herself similarly ensnared within the same dimension.
Whilst Max desperately searches for an escape route, she remains imprisoned within Vecna's realm of haunting memories.
Although many fans haven't reached this particular moment in the latest series, some have already expressed their immediate responses to witnessing Max's return in the opening episode.
During this sequence, audiences observe Max confined to her hospital bed whilst her mates visit to provide her with the most recent developments regarding their quest to track down Vecna and rescue Hawkins for good.
Following the heart-wrenching scene, supporters flocked to X, previously known as Twitter, expressing their feelings about seeing Max and their theories for her storyline this series.
One fan posted: "MAX MY BESTIE OH THIS IS PAINFUL WAKE UP PLEASE. Lucas loves her so bad I'm sick."
Another person attempting to reassure themselves that all would be well, penned: "MAX IS GOING TO WAKE UP MAX IS GOING TO WAKE UP MAX IS GOING TO WAKE UP MAX IS GOING TO WAKE UP MAX IS GOING TO WAKE UP MAX IS GOING TO WAKE UP."
Someone else highlighted: "Why did #Eleven acted like she didn't know what happened to #Max at the end of S4? #StrangerThings S5 better answer that question!"
While another quipped: "Oh Dustin getting beaten up, Holly hearing her parents' fight, Hopper getting shot and Lucas putting on Running Up That Hill for Max to listen to, if the first episode of Stranger Things was already this depressing imagine the rest."
And a final fan shared: "I started season 5 of Stranger Things Something's coming there Pls that Max doesn't die omg, my fave can't die."
Stranger Things 5 Volume 1 is streaming now on Netflix