Nell Fisher as Holly Wheeler in Stranger Things season 5
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Kara Hedash
Published 2 minutes ago
Kara Hedash is the Senior Editor for Screen Rant's TV team, specializing in feature coverage for streaming releases and cable programming. Aside from overseeing a passionate team of editors and writers, Kara has years of experience in news coverage, exclusives, fan conventions, interviews, and media preview events.
Before joining Screen Rant in 2019, Kara was a regular contributor for Movie Pilot, with articles also published on various other entertainment sites, such as Reel Honey, Hidden Remote, Netflix Life, AMC Theatres (via AMC Scene), and more.
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Warning: Spoilers ahead for Stranger Things season 5, Volume 1!Holly Wheeler quickly becomes a vital figure in Stranger Things season 5, and her fate further explains a scene from the show's first season in 2016. Despite being around since the beginning, Holly was recast ahead of Stranger Things season 5, with Nell Fisher taking over the role.
The move caused speculation that the character would become more important to the story in the final installment, and that notion was later confirmed by the Duffer Brothers prior to Volume 1's release. Considering Holly had remained a minor character in past seasons, the change initially came as a surprise to many fans.
Holly's role was heavily teased ahead of Stranger Things season 5, teasing her significance and potential involvement in the fight against Vecna. Many even correctly predicted that season 5's "The Vanishing of..." episode title was hiding Holly's name. Being a bit older has allowed the Duffers to pull her into the central story with her siblings, Nancy and Mike, but that shouldn't be a surprise based on a season 1 scene.
Holly's Fate In Stranger Things S5 Connects To Her Scene In Will's Room During Season 1
Holly Wheeler in Stranger Things season 1
During Stranger Things season 1, Holly, who was around 3 years old at the time, accompanied Karen when visiting Joyce following Will's disappearance. While Karen was talking to Joyce, Holly noticed flashing lights that led her into Will's room, where the Demogorgon seemed to try to come through the wall just as Joyce found her.
At the time, the scene indicated that the lights were being manipulated by something or someone. Joyce believed that Will was using lights to communicate, which was why she made the alphabet out of Christmas lights. Viewers now know that lights can be used to track movement from something in the Upside Down, including Demogorgons.
Four years after her first encounter with elements of the Upside Down, Holly became a real victim in her own bedroom. Before the Demogorgon crashed through her ceiling, lights and toys in her bedroom started flashing, calling back to the season 1 scene. Unfortunately, unlike the first time, Holly wasn't able to stay away from the conflict this time.
Did Vecna Want Holly Since Stranger Things Season 1?
Holly and Karen in Stranger Things season 5©Netflix / Courtesy Everett Collection
Only midway through Stranger Things season 5, it's still unclear what will happen to Holly now that she's stuck with Max in Vecna's mindscape. That said, the young character's role can be considered more of a callback to season 1 rather than the outcome of something planned since the first installment.
The Duffer Brothers called Holly the "centerpiece" of Stranger Things season 5, but noted that her expanded role wasn't the plan all along. The creators wanted to mirror Will's disappearance through other kids in Hawkins, with Holly's involvement increasing the stakes due to her connection to the core characters.
Though it wasn't planned from the start, the scene in season 1's "Holly, Jolly" episode paved the way for the character's bigger role when she got older. When the season 1 scene was written, Vecna wasn't luring her from the Upside Down or sending Demogorgons out to capture more children.
Granted, Stranger Things can now claim that Holly had been on Vecna's radar since the events of season 1 by filling more gaps in the timeline, such as the case with season 5's opening scene. Holly doesn't seem to fit what Vecna is looking for in his victims, kids who are "weak in body and mind." Perhaps there's something special about Holly's role in Vecna's plan that was discovered back in season 1.
Volume 1 of Stranger Things season 5 is now available on Netflix. Volume 2 will be released on December 25, followed by the series finale on December 31.
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