What was the surprise cameo in Stranger Things Season 5 Vol 1? Creators reveal its importance

The Stranger Things Season 5 Volume 1 ending reveal has to be one of the most shocking revelations that the Netflix blockbuster has managed to pull off. One moment, it appears all hope is lost, and in another, the audience erupts in awe, celebration, and shock.

While the final reveal of the first volume managed to pull off an extremely emotional reaction, another surprise cameo in the final episode of this volume has significant implications for the upcoming story.

Eleven opening a reinforced door to find her long-lost sister Kali, last seen in Season 2, was one of the most unexpected twists for the Netflix show. In a recent conversation with Entertainment Weekly, creators Matt and Ross Duffer reveal why this surprise cameo was important for the final season.

Stranger Things Season 5 creators Matt and Ross Duffer reveal why Kali's cameo was integral to the story

Ahead of the Stranger Things Season 5 release, the internet was going mad with fan theories regarding surprise cameos in the final season. From Eddie Munson to Barb, every character was considered, except for Eleven's "sister" from the Hawkins Lab, Kali (008).

This was mostly owing to the fact that the episode where Eleven spends time with Kali and her gang in Season 2, Episode 7, has long been considered one of the lowest-rated and unrelated-to-the-plot episodes for the show. Therefore, nobody expected Kali to make a comeback on the sci-fi series, let alone in the way that she did.

In the first few episodes of Stranger Things Season 5, Eleven and Hopper make the terrifying discovery that the military has discovered Eleven's 'kryptonite,' as Hopper calls it, and is using it to physically hurt Eleven and leave her unable to use her powers. After barely managing to get away, Eleven and Hopper interrogate (mind invade) one of the military goons to discover a reinforced gate where something similar to Eleven is being held to understand and control Eleven. They assume it's Vecna and decide to make their way into the lab to kill him.

However, nobody would have assumed that the person being held behind the gates was Kali, Eleven's sister. Linnea Berthelsen, who plays Kali, revealed in a conversation with Entertainment Weekly that:

"When Netflix [and series creators] Matt and Ross Duffer reached out about coming back as Kali, I was so intrigued to see where they wanted to take her. I care about her so deeply, and making sure she'd be in great hands was important to me."

She went on to say that their vision for Kali in the final season was one that even she didn't expect but was extremely inspired by:

"I was amazed by their raw, quite ambitious vision for Kali in season 5 of Stranger Things."

The Duffer brothers also revealed in a different conversation with Entertainment Weekly that Kali was always meant to come back, that they intended to close out all the loose threads by the end of Stranger Things Season 5:

"We've talked about bringing her back before, but there was not a narrative or thematic reason to bring her back. She'd served her purpose in season 2, but it still felt like this loose end where Eleven just left her there. What happened to her? To really tell this story completely, we needed to bring her back. As you'll see in Volume 2, she's really there. Her reason for being there is very important in terms of Eleven's journey and also the journey for this story to end."

So, even though Will having powers was the biggest reveal for Stranger Things Season 5, Eleven discovering Kali might just play out as a significant part of the narrative for the final fight against Vecna in Stranger Things Season 5.

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