Stranger Things Season 5 Gives Us An Official Update On Sadie Sink's Max Mayfield Return

Will "Stranger Things" go full "Game of Thrones" and kill off most of its characters in its fifth and final season? If stars Millie Bobby Brown and Maya Hawke have any say in the matter, it might — although showrunners/creators Matt and Ross Duffer seem a tad less inclined to end their remarkably-popular '80s nostalgia-fest with a no-holds-barred bloodbath. Not that this means everyone will be alive and well by the time the good people of Hawkins have concluded their battle with the scheming Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower). In fact, we know for sure one member of the "Stranger Things" gang will be (temporarily?) out of commission when season 5 begins.

For those whose memories have gotten a little rusty in the 84 years since "Stranger Things" dropped new episodes on Netflix, the show's fourth season ended with our favorite red-haired rebel, Max Mayfield (Sadie Sink), comatose after being possessed and very nearly contorted to death by Vecna. When season 5 finally started production back in early January, Sink was among those featured prominently in the first-look cast photo, suggesting she'll be doing more than chilling in a hospital bed while her friends take on everything Vecna and the Upside Down can throw at them. The real question is: Will she be playing mind games with the baddies while staying in a coma for most of the season (with Brown's Eleven potentially entering an isolation tank to access Max's mind and help her out)? Or will she be up and moving in the physical world sooner than later (again, with a little assist from Eleven and her newly-regained and stronger-than-ever telekinetic abilities)?

Either way, you can count on one thing: Sink will be getting her daily cardio workout in.

Kate Bush truly is the gift that keeps on giving for "Stranger Things." Season 4 provided us one of the show's all-time best scenes, in the form of Max overcoming Vecna's grip on her mind thanks to the power of "Running Up That Hill," resulting in the powerful visual of Sink (splattered in blood-red goo) sprinting for her life in slow-motion to return to the real world. If you thought the Duffer Brothers would refrain from milking that moment for every drop it's worth, you can rest assured, they will not.

Speaking in a feature for Variety, Sink confirmed that Max won't be sitting down for the entirety of season 5. "They love having me run," she teased. "That's all I'll say." The Duffer Brothers were equally tight-lipped on the matter. "She's going to play a part in the season," Matt Duffer replied. "But we don't want to reveal how that's possible," Ross Duffer added, with his sibling immediately chiming in, "Right, because she's in a coma." Still, just as she was the MVP of season 4 and has continued to impress with her ventures outside of Hawkins, Indiana (particularly with her roles in Leigh Janiak's "Fear Street" trilogy and "The Whale"), the Duffers expect this new season to only further affirm Sink as one of our most promising young actors. As Matt Duffer put it:

"I think she's grown just more confident as an actor and in her choices. We did film a scene the other day with her that was just absolutely heartbreaking. I don't know how she hits those notes."

Is too much to hope that Max will get a happy ending after everything she's gone through (and everyone she's lost along the way)? All will be revealed when "Stranger Things" returns for its final bow on Netflix in 2025.