<div class="" data-article-body="true"><p class="mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words">Nine years later, fans are finally getting answers to long-awaited questions regarding the <em>Stranger Things </em>universe — including what the Upside Down actually is.</p><p class="mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words">The revelatory moment arrives during <em>Stranger Things </em>Season 5, Volume 2, when Dustin Henderson (Gaten Matarazzo) comes to the chilling realization that everything they thought they knew about the Upside Down has been “dead wrong.” It’s long been thought to be an alternate dimension — except it isn’t one at all.</p><p class="mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words">“We’ve slowly been peeling back the layers over the seasons, but in our final season, we wanted to explain finally what the Upside Down was,” cocreator Ross Duffer recently <a class="link  rapid-with-clickid etailiffa-link" href="https://shopping.yahoo.com/rdlw?merchantId=2a170a1e-7e5c-4edd-b5dd-ea6d3bd9416a&amp;siteId=us-lifestyle&amp;pageId=1p-autolink&amp;contentUuid=bae91678-400e-4fdd-9841-6c59927f90cf&amp;featureId=text-link&amp;merchantName=Netflix&amp;linkText=told+Netflix%E2%80%99s+Tudum&amp;custData=eyJzb3VyY2VOYW1lIjoiV2ViLURlc2t0b3AtVmVyaXpvbiIsImxhbmRpbmdVcmwiOiJodHRwczovL3d3dy5uZXRmbGl4LmNvbS90dWR1bS9hcnRpY2xlcy9zdHJhbmdlci10aGluZ3MtNS11cHNpZGUtZG93bi1leHBsYWluZWQiLCJjb250ZW50VXVpZCI6ImJhZTkxNjc4LTQwMGUtNGZkZC05ODQxLTZjNTk5MjdmOTBjZiIsIm9yaWdpbmFsVXJsIjoiaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubmV0ZmxpeC5jb20vdHVkdW0vYXJ0aWNsZXMvc3RyYW5nZXItdGhpbmdzLTUtdXBzaWRlLWRvd24tZXhwbGFpbmVkIn0&amp;signature=AQAAAfWx22GmAKHfr3ML97p2T5gKlRh1pds39SNIvfOyhlXG&amp;gcReferrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.netflix.com%2Ftudum%2Farticles%2Fstranger-things-5-upside-down-explained&amp;spaceId=1197800334" data-i13n="elm:affiliate_link;sellerN:Netflix;elmt:;cpos:1;pos:1" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:told Netflix’s Tudum;elm:affiliate_link;sellerN:Netflix;elmt:;cpos:1;pos:1;itc:0;sec:content-canvas">told Netflix’s Tudum</a>.</p><p class="mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words">So what exactly is the Upside Down? What prompts Dustin’s revelation? And does this actually change things for the Hawkins gang? Below, we’re unraveling everything there is to know about the shadow dimension ahead of the <em>Stranger Things </em>series finale.</p><h2 class="mb-4 text-xl font-bold md:text-2xl">What does Dustin learn about the Upside Down?</h2><p class="mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words">In short, Dustin learns that the Upside Down has been a wormhole to an alternate dimension this entire time — not an alternate dimension itself.</p><p class="mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words">“We’ve known it was a wormhole since Season 1, but it’s one thing to say it, and it’s another to try to figure out how to visualize such an abstract concept,” Duffer <a rel class="link  yahoo-link" href="https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/tv/articles/stranger-things-5-finally-explains-021500894.html" data-i13n="cpos:2;pos:1" data-ylk="slk:told Deadline;cpos:2;pos:1;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;outcm:mb_qualified_link;_E:mb_qualified_link;ct:story;">told Deadline</a>.</p><h2 class="mb-4 text-xl font-bold md:text-2xl">How does Dustin come to this realization?</h2><figure class="relative mb-4"><div class="relative"><img alt="Joe Keery, Charlie Heaton, Gaten Matarazzo and Natalia Dyer stand in a dark place in a scene from Stranger Things. " loading="lazy" width="960" height="480" decoding="async" data-nimg="1" class="rounded-lg" style="color:transparent" src="https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/gUlFbL1P5kVySQKCD6aGKg--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTQ4MDtjZj13ZWJw/https://d29szjachogqwa.cloudfront.net/images/user-uploaded/TCDSTTH_ZX270.jpg"><button aria-label="View larger image" class="group absolute bottom-3 right-3 size-10 md:size-[50px] lg:inset-0 lg:size-full lg:bg-transparent" data-ylk="elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;"><span class="absolute bottom-0 right-0 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none"><svg viewbox="0 0 22 22" aria-hidden="true" class="size-4 lg:size-6" width="22" height="22"><path d="M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z"></path></svg></span></button><dialog aria-label="Modal Dialog" aria-modal="true" class="fixed inset-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden"></dialog></div><figcaption class="relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5"><div style="max-height:none;overflow:visible">Joe Keery, Charlie Heaton, Matarazzo and Natalia Dyer in Stranger Things. (Netflix/Courtesy of Everett Collection)</div></figcaption></figure><p class="mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words">Dustin comes across Dr. Brenner’s (Matthew Modine) journals in the Upside Down, which contain musings about the shadowy dimension — including an analysis of the gigantic sphere of exotic matter suspended above Hawkins lab. That exotic matter, as Dustin explains, is the only thing keeping the wormhole intact; Vecna didn’t create that sphere of exotic matter — science did. Dustin realizes this just as Nancy (Natalia Dyer) shoots at it in Chapter Five: “Shock Jock.” The gunshot disturbs the sphere — though not enough to destroy the Upside Down.</p><p class="mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words">When Dustin presents his findings to the rest of the group in Chapter Seven: “The Bridge,” he draws a cylinder with a circle at either end to signify how the Upside Down connects Hawkins to an alternate dimension known as the Abyss.</p><p class="mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words">“It’s a wormhole,” Dustin tells Steve (Joe Keery) of the Upside Down in Chapter Five. “A bridge between two points in time and space.”</p><h2 class="mb-4 text-xl font-bold md:text-2xl">But what is the Abyss? And how does it factor into this?</h2><p class="mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words">While the Upside Down isn’t an alternate dimension, the Abyss is. Before she and Holly (Nell Fisher) part ways, Max (Sadie Sink) assures her that she’ll end up back in the Upside Down and that she should seek refuge in her house until they come find her — except Max is wrong. Holly isn’t actually in the Upside Down — she’s in the Abyss.</p><p class="mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words">Walk with us here. The Abyss is where Holly and the 11 other children captured by Vecna are entombed in the unsightly roots of the <a class="link " href="https://strangerthings.fandom.com/wiki/Pain_Tree" data-i13n="cpos:3;pos:1" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:Pain Tree;cpos:3;pos:1;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas">Pain Tree</a>. The Abyss is essentially an eerie alternate dimension characterized by desolate landscapes and scorched orange skies. The Pain Tree serves as the dimension’s landmark structure.</p><p class="mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words">The Abyss is connected to the human world via the Upside Down, which we now know to be an extra-dimensional bridge between both universes.</p><h2 class="mb-4 text-xl font-bold md:text-2xl">How does this revelation change things?</h2><figure class="relative mb-4"><div class="relative"><img alt="Gaten Matarazzo and Joe Keery in Stranger Things. " loading="lazy" width="960" height="480" decoding="async" data-nimg="1" class="rounded-lg" style="color:transparent" src="https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/Sec6XvA.6eabMTnFnqrVLw--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTQ4MDtjZj13ZWJw/https://d29szjachogqwa.cloudfront.net/images/user-uploaded/TCDSTTH_ZX292.jpg"><button aria-label="View larger image" class="group absolute bottom-3 right-3 size-10 md:size-[50px] lg:inset-0 lg:size-full lg:bg-transparent" data-ylk="elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;"><span class="absolute bottom-0 right-0 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none"><svg viewbox="0 0 22 22" aria-hidden="true" class="size-4 lg:size-6" width="22" height="22"><path d="M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z"></path></svg></span></button><dialog aria-label="Modal Dialog" aria-modal="true" class="fixed inset-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden"></dialog></div><figcaption class="relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5"><div style="max-height:none;overflow:visible">Matarazzo and Keery in Stranger Things. (Netflix/Courtesy of Everett Collection)</div></figcaption></figure><p class="mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words">Knowing that the Upside Down is essentially an interdimensional breach rather than a twisted parallel dimension is crucial to destroying it. With this newfound information, the Hawkins gang can devise a concrete plan to destroy the Upside Down and banish Vecna and the monsters for good. They can finally sever Vecna’s link to the human world once and for all.</p><h2 class="mb-4 text-xl font-bold md:text-2xl">What have the Duffer brothers said about this revelation?</h2><figure class="relative mb-4"><div class="relative"><img alt="Joe Keery, Gaten Matarazzo holding a walkie-talkie, Charlie Heaton and Natalia Dyer in a scene from Stranger Things." loading="lazy" width="960" height="540" decoding="async" data-nimg="1" class="rounded-lg" style="color:transparent" src="https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/bGrpcEa_u8wUsLnhRSMIRg--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTU0MDtjZj13ZWJw/https://d29szjachogqwa.cloudfront.net/images/user-uploaded/thumbTCDSTTH_ZX259%281%29.jpg"><button aria-label="View larger image" class="group absolute bottom-3 right-3 size-10 md:size-[50px] lg:inset-0 lg:size-full lg:bg-transparent" data-ylk="elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;"><span class="absolute bottom-0 right-0 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none"><svg viewbox="0 0 22 22" aria-hidden="true" class="size-4 lg:size-6" width="22" height="22"><path d="M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z"></path></svg></span></button><dialog aria-label="Modal Dialog" aria-modal="true" class="fixed inset-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden"></dialog></div><figcaption class="relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5"><div style="max-height:none;overflow:visible">Keery, Matarazzo, Heaton and Dyer. (Netflix/Courtesy of Everett Collection)</div></figcaption></figure><p class="mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words">The Duffer brothers, according to cocreator Matt Duffer, drew inspiration from a 1957 war film when crafting the Upside Down lore. With their inspiration finally set, the pieces began to fall into place.</p><p class="mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words">“We love the film <em>Bridge on the River Kwai,</em>” Duffer <a class="link  rapid-with-clickid etailiffa-link" href="https://shopping.yahoo.com/rdlw?merchantId=2a170a1e-7e5c-4edd-b5dd-ea6d3bd9416a&amp;siteId=us-lifestyle&amp;pageId=1p-autolink&amp;contentUuid=bae91678-400e-4fdd-9841-6c59927f90cf&amp;featureId=text-link&amp;merchantName=Netflix&amp;linkText=told+Netflix%E2%80%99s+Tudum&amp;custData=eyJzb3VyY2VOYW1lIjoiV2ViLURlc2t0b3AtVmVyaXpvbiIsImxhbmRpbmdVcmwiOiJodHRwczovL3d3dy5uZXRmbGl4LmNvbS90dWR1bS9hcnRpY2xlcy9zdHJhbmdlci10aGluZ3MtNS11cHNpZGUtZG93bi1leHBsYWluZWQjOn46dGV4dD1JbiUyMEVwaXNvZGUlMjA1JTJDJTIwRHVzdGluJTIwZGlzY292ZXJzLEhhd2tpbnMlMjB0byUyMHlldCUyMGFub3RoZXIlMjB3b3JsZC4iLCJjb250ZW50VXVpZCI6ImJhZTkxNjc4LTQwMGUtNGZkZC05ODQxLTZjNTk5MjdmOTBjZiIsIm9yaWdpbmFsVXJsIjoiaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubmV0ZmxpeC5jb20vdHVkdW0vYXJ0aWNsZXMvc3RyYW5nZXItdGhpbmdzLTUtdXBzaWRlLWRvd24tZXhwbGFpbmVkIzp-OnRleHQ9SW4lMjBFcGlzb2RlJTIwNSUyQyUyMER1c3RpbiUyMGRpc2NvdmVycyxIYXdraW5zJTIwdG8lMjB5ZXQlMjBhbm90aGVyJTIwd29ybGQuIn0&amp;signature=AQAAASo1Q8_qdmXTZ7kT0uegHhUvaTdRBbMTLjDIOxOwG2Ld&amp;gcReferrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.netflix.com%2Ftudum%2Farticles%2Fstranger-things-5-upside-down-explained%23%3A%7E%3Atext%3DIn%2520Episode%25205%252C%2520Dustin%2520discovers%2CHawkins%2520to%2520yet%2520another%2520world.&amp;spaceId=1197800334" data-i13n="elm:affiliate_link;sellerN:Netflix;elmt:;cpos:4;pos:1" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:told Netflix’s Tudum;elm:affiliate_link;sellerN:Netflix;elmt:;cpos:4;pos:1;itc:0;sec:content-canvas">told Netflix’s Tudum</a> of the David Lean-directed film. “The idea in that film is they need to blow up this bridge. It’s a major military goal. So we thought the idea of a supernatural version of that, where … our characters ultimately need to blow up this ‘bridge’ that connects Hawkins to an evil dimension was a really cool goal and something we hadn’t seen before. That was something we’d been working toward for a couple years.”</p></div>

The revelatory moment arrives during "Stranger Things" Season 5, Volume 2, when Dustin Henderson (Gaten Matarazzo) comes to the chilling realization that everything they thought they knew about the Upside Down has been "dead wrong."

What exactly is the Upside Down in 'Stranger Things'? The wormhole revelation, explained.

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