Stranger Things Season 5 The Finale brought fans out in droves over the course of a day and a half to the tune of an estimated 1.1 million viewers.
Final numbers will be released soon, but EntTelligence was even more bullish on the initial number, with their polling estimates at 1.3 million.
As far as box office revenue, the final episode likely generated $20 million to $25 million in revenue, setting a new record for a Netflix title (behind KPop Demon Hunters‘ $18 million).
Due to the fact that theaters couldn’t charge for tickets for the finale (stipulated by the cast’s contractual terms for residual income), theaters sold concession voucher reservations instead of actual tickets. AMC and Cinemark Theatres both charged $20, while Regal Cinemas and other smaller chains charged $11 to make the experience even more tied to the series.
AMC CEO Adam Aaron shared his excitement over the windfall for theaters in the tweet below:
Will this lead to more theatrical releases by Netflix? Many fans at the Stranger Things event saw a trailer for the upcoming Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man movie, which will screen in theaters on March 6 before arriving on Netflix on March 20.
Stay tuned to Conskipper for more information about Stranger Things, special movie events, and don’t forget to read our opinion piece on how the roll-out of the finale was initially handled by the Netflix brass right here.