The Duffer Brothers only shared whether Eleven lived or died with Millie, meaning her co-stars are none the wiser.
During the podcast appearance, they texted her to remind her not to let on to her cast mate Noah Schnapp (Will Byers), and she text back: “Of course not.”
The creators left the door open for viewers to decide whether they believe Mike Wheeler’s (Finn Wolfhard) version of events.
Duffer also told The Hollywood Reporter: “The characters can’t know and the audience can’t know because then it puts Eleven in danger and her sacrifice was for nothing.
Stranger Things premiered in 2016. Photo / Netflix
“So there’s a point in not knowing. The boys obviously choose to believe. I’m not sure what the majority of people are thinking, but dipping my toes a little bit into social media, it seems like people are choosing to believe and are going to the Mike Wheeler route.”
Ross wanted viewers to believe in the “happier ending” – regardless of whether it was true or not.
He told Netflix’s Tudum: “She represents magic in a lot of ways and the magic of childhood.
“For our characters to move on and for the story of Hawkins and the Upside Down to come to a close, Eleven had to go away. We thought it would be beautiful if our characters continued to believe in that happier ending even if we didn’t give them a clear answer to whether that’s true or not.
“The fact that they’re believing in it, we just thought it was such a better way to end the story and a better way to represent the closure of this journey and their journey from children to adults.”