Charlie Heaton is weighing in on the debate over whether Eleven is alive or dead after the Stranger Things series finale. "I love that for Mike, that's what he tells us, you know, that's coping, right?" Heaton, 31, told Us Weekly exclusively at the Industry season 4 premiere in New York City on Thursday, January 8. "The stories that we choose to believe and the versions of our reality that we choose to believe to cope, and I think it's really beautiful." As for what Heaton, who played Jonathan Byers on all five seasons of Stranger Things, personally believes about Eleven's fate, he played coy by simply shrugging his shoulders. The Stranger Things series finale, which premiered on December 31, 2025, saw Eleven (played by Millie Bobby Brown) defeat Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower) and the Mind Flayer with help from all of her friends. However, when the party escaped the Upside Down and returned to the Rightside Up, they were greeted by Dr. Kay (Linda Hamilton) and the military, who had been chasing Eleven all season. Sadie Sink Reveals If She Thinks [Spoiler] Died in 'Stranger Things' Finale The capture made Eleven realize that Kali, a.k.a. 008 (Linnea Berthelsen), who was shot and killed by Lieutenant Robert Akers (Alex Breaux) in the Upside Down, was right that the military would never give up their pursuit of her powers as long as she's alive. She said one final goodbye to boyfriend Mike Wheeler (Finn Wolfhard) in her mind before returning to the gate to the Upside Down, where she allowed herself to be swept away by an explosion of exotic matter and a collapsing wormhole. Or so it seemed. Later, during the epilogue, Mike realized that Eleven likely would not have been able to communicate with him telepathically from the gate because the "Hedgehog" sonic weapons were pointed right at her. (As fans saw throughout the season, the weapons proved to be Eleven's "kryptonite" and caused her too much pain to use any powers.) (C)Netflix / Courtesy Everett Collection During one last emotional game of Dungeons & Dragons, Mike told Will (Noah Schnapp), Lucas (Caleb McLaughlin), Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo) and Max (Sadie Sink) what he believed really happened to Eleven. According to Mike, she snuck away from the military and into a nearby building while a barely-alive Kali, using her powers one last time, projected a fake image of Eleven to the Upside Down gate. As Mike theorized, Eleven's goodbye was not because she was dying, but because she planned to run away. She ultimately made her way to a land with three waterfalls, just as Mike promised they could find once their battle was over. (C)Netflix / Courtesy Everett Collection Mike emphasized that his explanation was only a theory, prompting him and his friends to each declare, "I believe." Since the finale, fans have debated whether Mike's story was true or just a way of coping with Eleven's death. According to series creators Matt and Ross Duffer, Eleven's fate is up to viewers' interpretation. 'Stranger Things' Series Finale Ending Explained: Who Died? Who Survived? "Obviously, we've had these conversations with Millie too, and we all have our own interpretations. I worry if I say it, it might take away. We really want the audience to take from it what they want," Ross, 41, said in a January 1 interview with The Hollywood Reporter. Ross' twin brother, Matt, added, "You can't write with a sense of ambiguity. You're writing from a specific point of view, because the character doesn't know; Max doesn't know, right? The characters can't know and the audience can't know because then it puts Eleven in danger and her sacrifice was for nothing. 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 the Mike Wheeler route." With reporting by Vincent Perella