Chrissy, wake up! We just got some big Stranger Things casting news straight from Tudum: A Global Fan Event. 

Linda Hamilton (The Terminator, Children of the Corn, Chuck) is joining the cast of Stranger Things 5. What role will she play? How will she interact with the traumatized denizens of Hawkins? Will she join the fight against Vecna? That, we don’t know quite yet. But we do know that Hamilton is a major fan of the series.

“I don’t know how to be a fangirl and an actress at the same time,” she said during her video announcement at Tudum. “I’m gonna work on that.”

While she wasn’t live onstage at Tudum in Brazil, her old pal and Netflix’s Chief Action Officer Arnold Schwarzenegger was there to set the stage for his Terminator co-star. “Good to see you, Arnold. Let’s get dinner soon,” she said. “And everyone else, I’ll see you in Hawkins…”

Hamilton heading to Hawkins is the first casting dispatch that’s been announced regarding any new key players in Season 5 of Stranger Things.

Back on Stranger Things Day on Nov. 6, 2022, the Duffer brothers revealed the first episode title of Stranger Things 5 — “The Crawl.” As to who’s crawling and where they’re crawling to, we’ll have to wait and see. 

But the Duffers are keen to untangle some lingering threads about the Upside Down in the final season. It’s all part of the 25-page mythology document they wrote for Netflix back in Season 1, unpacking the lore and mysteries of the Upside Down. “The last remaining questions that are answered in that document, we’ve punted a couple of those to have some big reveals in Season 5,” said Ross Duffer during Geeked Week last June. “And that’s really going to affect what Season 5 is about.” 

There’s still so much more to come before our heroes face the horrors of the Upside Down once more. But till then, over and out.

Netflix fans everywhere can tune in to Tudum: A Global Fan Event, livestreaming from São Paulo, Brazil. Tudum features exclusive news, never-before-seen footage, trailers, and first looks of your favorite series, films and games.

Obsessed With All Things ‘Stranger Things’?From behind-the-scenes photos to video interviews to breaking news, Tudum is home to everything you need to know about your favorite show.