Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven in the final season of Stranger Things

This article contains spoilers for the final episode of Stranger Things.

As is so often the case with a TV show as huge as Stranger Things, the recent series finale hasn’t exactly won everyone over.

The award-winning Netflix sci-fi drama came to an end last week, with one last feature-length episode released on New Year’s Day.

Since then, fans have been split about the final instalment of Stranger Things, which closed with a flash-forward to the group’s high school graduation and a somewhat ambiguous ending that the show’s creators have insisted is up to fans to determine what happens.

However, some viewers (particularly those who were more unimpressed with the way things turned out in the finale) have theorised there may be more to the last episode than meets the eye, and that yet another instalment could be dropping on Netflix later this week…

Why do some Stranger Things fans think a new episode is coming on 7 January? And what is the ‘Conformity Gate’ theory?

Based on “evidence” that people have been piecing together online, many fans have begun speculating that the epilogue at the end of the Stranger Things finale may have been a fake reality constructed by Vecna to make them believe he’s dead when he isn’t.

One suggestion is that the spines of the neatly-arranged books in the Dungeons & Dragons scene appear to spell out ‘X A Lie’, hinting that what transpired in Dimension X didn’t quite go down as it appeared on screen.

Then, there’s the shot of the audience at the Hawkins High graduation, who all mimic the body language of Vecna’s human form, Henry Creel, while it has also been pointed out that the Wheeler family have all begun to resemble him too.

I think Mike is keeping the party “happy” and distracted from what is really happening, especially since even the graduation felt strange. Everyone, including the people in the back, was positioned the same way as Henry. That feels too intentional to be a coincidence pic.twitter.com/luCA11QAQy

this conformity gate theory is INSANEEE, if it doesn’t happen we truly are better writers than the duffers #conformitygate#StrangerThings5pic.twitter.com/xskLExHXIe

This theory would also explain the absence of certain characters from the finale, as they are people that Vecna didn’t know, and therefore couldn’t include in his distorted reality.

Reality if Vickie was not seen at the end because I had never seen her?But if Stacey came out at the end because Vecna saw her at the snowball party, and when she invites Dustin to the party she doesn’t mention Suzie maybe it’s because Vecna doesn’t know her #conformitygatepic.twitter.com/UWw37UnhJM

Among fans on social media, this theory has come to be known as “Conformity Gate”, with many of those who believe in it also speculating that the truth will come out in a new episode released on 7 January.

Per Forbes, the root of this 7 January theory is a “cryptic” social media post Netflix shared on Christmas Day, teasing that “your Future is on its way” on that pivotal date.

We should point out, though, that the post in question actually alludes to the date the streaming platform is unveiling its slate for 2026, and was accompanied by a trailer featuring Teyana Taylor, the star of Netflix’s new action comedy The Rip.

Your Future is on its way.

© HuffPost