Netflix briefly crashes as fans stream Stranger Things Season 5 premiere

As fans eagerly tuned in for the premiere of Stranger Things Season 5, Netflix reportedly faced widespread outages, preventing many users from streaming the show.

Viewers in the United States were most affected, though some disruptions were also reported in India.

According to PEOPLE, the platform went down shortly after the first four episodes of the final season were released at 5 pm PT on Wednesday, leaving fans unable to access the highly anticipated content. Millions of viewers, who had waited three years for the series’ conclusion, took to social media to vent their frustration. One fan tweeted on X, "NETFLIX FIX YOURSELF RIGHT NOW BRO, I'VE BEEN WAITING THREE YEARS." Another added, "OH MY GOD NETFLIX PLS FIX YOURSELF I WANNA WATCH."

Netflix confirmed that the issue was resolved quickly. A company spokesperson told PEOPLE, "some members briefly experienced an issue streaming on TV devices, but service recovered for all accounts within five minutes."

The crash came just hours after series co-creator Ross Duffer shared on Instagram that Netflix had already increased its server capacity, claiming the platform had "increased bandwidth by 30 per cent to avoid a crash."

Season 5 marks the final chapter of the hit sci-fi series. The new episodes pick up in fall 1987, following a smaller time jump than fans expected after Season 4, which was set in spring 1986. The concluding storyline will see the Hawkins crew confront the "Upside Down" one last time.

Returning cast members include Millie Bobby Brown, Finn Wolfhard, Noah Schnapp, Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb McLaughlin, Sadie Sink, Joe Keery, Natalia Dyer, Charlie Heaton, David Harbour, and Winona Ryder. The final season consists of eight episodes, according to Netflix’s fan platform Tudum, as reported by PEOPLE.

Episodes 5, 6, and 7 are set to release on December 25, with the series finale scheduled for December 31.