The finale of Stranger Things served as a monumental moment for the streaming age, concluding the Hawkins epic with a sprawling, three-part rollout that took over the 2025 holiday season. However, despite the immense buildup and ten years of loyalty, the final episodes became the most polarizing of the entire series, according to ComicBook.com. Reception hit an all-time low for the franchise, with “The Bridge” in particular being singled out by critics and fans for its disjointed pacing and controversial story beats.
This deep-seated frustration sparked “Comformity Gate,” a viral conspiracy theory where fans–convinced the actual finale was merely a hallucination cast by Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower)–insisted a hidden ninth episode existed to fix the ending. ComicBook.com says that although Netflix and the Duffer Brothers have firmly dismissed these rumors, tension within the fandom remains at a boiling point, further exacerbated by a recent, biting parody on Saturday Night Live.
During the January 17 episode, SNL skewered Netflix’s rumored plans to extend the Stranger Things universe indefinitely through a series of absurd spinoff trailers, via ComicBook.com. A standout segment, Mike in Manhattan, parodied Sex and the City by reimagining an adult Mike Wheeler (played by host Finn Wolfhard) as a struggling writer in New York.
The sketch featured surprise cameos from original cast members Gaten Matarazzo and Caleb McLaughlin, who joined Mike for a brunch scene to candidly overshare about their adult romantic lives. Notably, the sketch poked fun at the show’s pacing by explaining that Noah Schnapp’s character, Will, was absent because he was “still stuck” filming his lengthy coming-out scene from the actual Season five, according to ComicBook.com.
The sketch featured a fictionalized version of Will Byers delivering a drawn-out coming-out speech filled with awkward puns, such as, “I’m gay-ning the courage to tell you the truth, and the truth is I’m gay-zing at all of your faces.” ComicBook.com reported that while Saturday Night Live is known for its biting pop-culture parodies, this specific segment sparked immediate controversy. Many viewers felt the joke was insensitive, arguing that Will’s sexuality was a deeply meaningful arc developed over five seasons of struggle and shouldn’t be reduced to a punchline. On social media, critics have slammed the “gay-ning courage” wordplay as a tone-deaf gag that trivializes an important milestone for LGBTQ+ representation in a major franchise.
Because Will is a teenager facing the intense social hostility of the 1980s, fans argue that his emotionally heavy coming-out arc was a narrative necessity. By mocking this slow-burning development as “tedious,” SNL is being accused of ridiculing the difficulty of the queer experience rather than the show’s actual writing. The outcry is particularly sharp because the original scene served as a vital, serious milestone for many viewers who saw their own struggles reflected in Will’s journey, according to ComicBook.com.
Conversely, some viewers view the backlash as an overreaction to typical late-night satire. Defenders argue the sketch was a sharp critique of the Duffer Brothers’ writing style, specifically mocking Stranger Things’ habit of overextending emotional moments for drama. ComicBook.com says that from this viewpoint, the target wasn’t the character’s sexuality, but rather the “never-ending” pacing of the scene itself. Regardless of the intent, the heated debate proves that the Stranger Things brand remains as divisive as ever.