Stranger Things Season 5 originally did not include this major character to have a big role, details explored in-depth

When the Duffer Brothers first sat down to work on the fifth season of Stranger Things, one character barely scraped off their surface, but later went on to become one of the most prominent characters on the show. As Matt Duffer revealed, the final blueprint for the show changed radically, and one of the biggest changes it brought was to the character of Holly Wheeler

As ScreenRant reported, the earlier outline for the show did not involve the youngest of the Wheelers as Matt Duffer stated,

"Roughly. If you remember, season 4 was in the midst of COVID, so we had a massive break where we actually had time. We had finished writing season 4, and we started to work on season 5. So we had an outline for it. It changed radically, the outline, because after season 4 came out we looked at the outline, and we thought a lot could be different and improved. Holly was not in that outline, for instance, but the rough shape of it, especially the ending, was all laid out."

The fifth season of Stranger Things of course, gave Holly a vital role, as she significantly impacted the story, with an entire episode dedicated to her disappearance and her later bond with Sadie Sink's Max Mayfield as they are stuck inside Vecna's mind together. The show ends with a bittersweet note of her and her friends inheriting Mike Wheeler's basement and his Dungeons and Dragons, as the older characters, in a way, passed down their childhood to the ones that came after them, and that included Holly.

More details about Holly Wheeler's arc on Stranger Things

For four seasons, Holly Wheeler mostly existed on the edges of Stranger Things. She was the quiet little sister in the background, clutching toys, noticing things adults brushed off, and occasionally being far more perceptive than anyone gave her credit for. Season 5 changes that completely, as Nell Fisher steps into the role.

Holly's arc finally takes off when she becomes an active player in the fight against Vecna and is no longer just Mike's younger sister. The show proves what has always been implied, that she has been far more perceptive than anyone else. In the first season there was even an episode when she provoked the lights in the Byers' house during Will's disappearance, highlighting that she will be far more important in the future.

Her journey takes a sharp turn when she is targeted by Vecna directly and is dragged inside the landscape of his mind, forced to confront the horrors of it. By the end, Holly represents a legacy. She is proof that Hawkins’ story does not end with the original Party, as she takes over from Mike and his friends.

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Stranger Things is streaming on Netflix.

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