The fifth and final season of Stranger Things is further away than ever.
On Saturday, co-creators and co-showrunners Matt and Ross Duffer, known as the Duffer Brothers, announced on Twitter that production on Season 5 has been shut down due to the Hollywood writers’ strike.
“Writing does not stop when filming begins,” the brothers wrote. “While we’re excited to start production with our amazing cast and crew, it is not possible during this strike. We hope a fair deal is reached soon so we can all get back to work. Until then — over and out.”
Fans have long been waiting for the final season of the Netflix series, which was set to begin shooting this summer. Season 4 finished airing on Netflix in July 2022. In November, the Duffer Brothers shared a teaser, announcing the Season 5 premiere episode title, “Chapter One: The Crawl” as part of the annual “Stranger Things Day” celebration.
TV programming has been disrupted since the Writers Guild of America officially went on strike on Tuesday, May 2 after talks with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers broke down despite months of negotiation.
The strike’s first ripples have already been felt by late-night talk shows, which went dark the day the strike began. Saturday Night Live has cancelled its final three shows of Season 48, which would’ve been hosted by Pete Davidson, Kieran Culkin and Jennifer Coolidge.
This story originally appeared on TVLine