It's not often that two of the biggest shows of the year release new episodes on Christmas, but the streaming services are feeling quite generous in 2025. On Christmas night, we will be running a tight ship. The festivities will need to be over before our trip to Hawkins and a quick car ride up to the cottage with Shane and Ilya. But don't worry, doing both is possible!
If you're concerned that you won't have enough time to watch the Heated Rivalry season 1 finale as soon as it premieres because Stranger Things 5 volume 2 won't be over in time, put those fears away. As long as you begin Stranger Things when the episodes drop on Netflix (barring any delays from crashing), skip the intros, and keep the breaks minimal, you should even have time to spare.
The Duffer Brothers revealed the official runtimes for the season 5 volume 2 episodes, which are as follows: Episode 5 (1 hour and 8 minutes), episode 6 (1 hour and 15 minutes), and Episode 7 (1 hour and 6 minutes). All told, Stranger Things 5 volume 2 has a grand total runtime of about 3 hours and 29 minutes, though some time could be factored out for the opening and closing credits.
That means that if you start Stranger Things as soon as season 5 volume 2 premieres at 8 p.m. ET on Netflix, you could have upwards of 30 minutes to spare until Heated Rivalry season 1 episode 6 drops at 12 a.m. ET on HBO Max. It's a tight squeeze to make it from Hawkins to the cottage in time, but it's entirely possible watch all four episodes in the same night back-to-back.
Honestly, this might be one of the biggest same-day pop culture events since Barbie and Oppenheimer were released in theaters together and created the Barbenheimer moment. Wicked and Gladiator II attempted to recreate the excitement but fell short. Something suggests that Stranger Rivalry will be a Christmas we'll be talking about for quite some time.
Stranger Things 5 volume 2 picks up following a major reveal at the end of volume 1 involving Will that directly leads into the next phase of the group's battle against Vecna. Additionally, the volume 1 finale revealed that a character we never expected to return is back in a big way. By the time Christmas festivities come to an end, fans will be voraciously tearing into these episodes for answers.
Meanwhile, on the Heated Rivalry season 1 finale, Shane and Ilya head to Shane's secluded cottage for alone time together after being inspired by Scott Hunter's public coming out. The newly united couple plan to revel in some hard-fought freedom, but the future and the outside world soon encroach on their peaceful escape. This Christmas is a one-two punch of huge TV episodes!