‘Stranger Things’ Season 4: Everything We Know About Hopper’s Return, New Characters and More

Credit: Netflix

‘Stranger Things’ Season 4: Everything We Know About Hopper's Return, New Characters and More

Hellfire Club assemble! While the coronavirus pandemic delayed the season 4 premiere of Stranger Things, the excitement is still real — and it's all coming together! "I think most would probably say it's the scariest [season] out of the previous three, which I love because it's very fun to film," Gaten Matarazzo, who plays Dustin Henderson, told Us Weekly exclusively in January 2021. The hit Netflix series is set in 1980s in the fictional Hawkins, Indiana, and follows various supernatural events that affect the town. The show stars Millie Bobby Brown, Finn Wolfhard, Caleb McLaughlin, Noah Schnapp, Winona Ryder, David Harbour and more. One of the biggest mysteries following the season 3 finale, which debuted in July 2019, was whether Jim Hopper (Harbour) was truly dead. Fans got a glimpse at the answer during the first teaser for season 4, which was released in February 2020 and showed Hopper in Russia after he seemingly vanished in a mysterious machine. Matarazzo told Us that he wasn't surprised to see Hopper's story continue. "I guess most of the cast had a pretty good idea that he might be making a return, but they weren't too sure about it from the beginning," the New Jersey native said in January 2021. "By the time we had gotten to the table read [and] we had all started reading together, it had been pretty clear. But it was great to have it confirmed when we saw David there." [jwplayer 96xXQyd6-zhNYySv2] Series creators Matt and Ross Duffer offered a larger explanation about Hopper's faith following the release of the sneak peek. “We’re excited to officially confirm that production on Stranger Things 4 is now underway — and even more excited to announce the return of Hopper,” the Duffer brothers said in a statement at the time. “Although it’s not all good news for our ‘American’; he is imprisoned far from home in the snowy wasteland of Kamchatka, where he will face dangers both human … and other." The duo continued to tease the surprising twists and turns viewers could expect from the fourth season. "Meanwhile, back in the states, a new horror is beginning to surface, something long-buried, something that connects everything," they added. "Season 4 is shaping up to be the biggest and most frightening season yet, and we cannot wait for everyone to see more. In the meantime, pray for the American.” As for whether fans should prepare to say goodbye to the series, which originally premiered in 2016, it sounds like there is still more of the story left to tell. "We know what the end is, and we know when it is," Ross told The Hollywood Reporter in August 2020. "[The pandemic] has given us time to look ahead, figure out what is best for the show. Starting to fill that out gave us a better idea of how long we need to tell that story." Scroll down for everything to know so far about season 4 of Stranger Things: [podcast_block]

Credit: Courtesy of Netflix

Cause for Concern

In May 2022, several cast members admitted that they were worried about how some of the season 4 content would be received.

"I thought they'd have to tone it down," Quinn, who plays newcomer Eddie, told E! News about the story lines. "I didn't think they would commit to how gruesome it was on the page. But clearly they don't care about young kids at all."

Kerry also reflected on the show's darker turn, saying, "Kids will be scared. Kids will have nightmares. If I was a kid and I watching this, it would be disturbing."

Even though the actors didn't specify what was concerning, Hawke noted that  "the bone breaking" was not her favorite thing to watch from the upcoming season.

Credit: Courtesy of Netflix

1st Look

In new photos shared by Netflix in March 2022, the upcoming season of Stranger Things appears to be darker than ever.

Fans get a sneak peek at the Creel House, Robin and Nancy's unexpected friendship, Joyce and Murray's attempt to track down Hopper and more.

Credit: Netflix

Hopper's Return and Past

The first look at season 4 was titled "From Russia With Love" and offered fans a glimpse at where Hopper ended up. The former Hawkins police chief, who returned with a shaved head, appeared to be stuck in a snow-filled Russia.

Harbour previously shared that there would be "a big, huge reveal about Hopper's backstory" during an appearance at 2019's Liverpool Comic Con, adding that season 4 was "definitely going to be a lot scarier than prior years."

Credit: Netflix

Not the End

The Duffer brothers still see more seasons in the show's future, confirming in August 2020 that the fourth chapter “won’t be the end.”

Matt told The Hollywood Reporter at the time, “For the first time, we have all the scripts written and we’re able to look at it as a whole piece and make adjustments,” while Ross noted that the COVID-19 production pause gave them “a lot more time to work on the scripts.”

Credit: Shutterstock (2)

Suspicious Additions

In November 2020, Deadline revealed a handful of new actors who were joining the fourth season, including Robert Englund, who will play Victor Creel, a disturbed and intimidating man who is imprisoned in a psychiatric hospital for a gruesome murder in the 1950s. 

Jamie Campbell Bower was cast in the role of Peter Ballard, a caring man who works as an orderly at a psychiatric hospital. 

Jonathan Byers (Charlie Heaton) will find a new best friend in Argyle, played by Eduardo Franco. The character is described as “a fun-loving stoner who proudly delivers delicious pizza pies for Surfer Boy Pizza.”

Little is known about Hawkins High’s official D&D club leader, Eddie Munson, played by Joseph Quinn, but the character may prove essential to solving the season’s mysteries.

Other new cast members include Sherman Augustus, Mason Dye and Nikola Djuricko.

Credit: Netflix

Bigger Role

In February 2020, Netflix confirmed that Erica Sinclair, Lucas’ little sister, will be back in a bigger way. Priah Ferguson was upgraded to a series regular.

"Playing Erica Sinclair is an unbelievable experience. When I landed the role, I hadn’t seen many young Black girls represented in an international Sci-fi series," Ferguson wrote in a post via Netflix's Instagram in February 2021.

She added: "Erica was raised in an era where it wasn’t common for Black girls to use their voice. Especially in a fictional American town like Hawkins. Girls who looked like her were probably ignored and dismissed. ... I hope that Erica inspires young Black girls to stand up for what they believe in, to embrace their nerdy side and discover the beauty of their magic within!"

Credit: Shutterstock (3); Courtesy of Regina Ting Chen/Instagram

New Friends

In June 2021, Netflix announced even more new cast members who viewers will meet in the upcoming season, including Amybeth McNulty, Myles Truitt, Regina Ting Chen and Grace Van Dien.

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Expect the Unexpected

“I’m excited for people to see the season. We’ve been filming it right now for the past year and a half, two years because of COVID,” McLaughlin told Complex in July 2021. “I’m really excited for everyone to see the season. It’s definitely different from the last couple of seasons. Story lines are insane. It’s going to be really exciting to see what people think about this. While I’m talking about this, I’m thinking about what we’ve been filming and I’m just like, ‘Wow. No one knows what is to come.’ It’s insane.”

Credit: Charles Sykes/Invision/AP/Shutterstock

Epic Return

Joe Keery and producer Shawn Levy teased what fans could look forward to as they start to wrap up filming for season 4.

"What [fans] can expect is a season that is wildly more epic than the first three," Levy told Entertainment Tonight in August 2021. "The reason it has taken a minute is, yes, COVID [19] — COVID protocols that keep us safe but have slowed us down — but also, it is by far the most ambitious, epic, globe-spanning plot we have ever done."

Keery, who had already finished filming his scenes for Steve Harrington, added that it will "be worth the wait."

Credit: Courtesy Stranger Things/YouTube

Premiere Date

Netflix confirmed that season 4 will be split into two parts. Volume 1 will be released on May 27 and Volume 2 will drop on July 1.

The show's creators also announced that Stranger Things will end with season 5.

Credit: Netflix

Teaser Trailer

Netflix premiered a nearly 2-minute-long teaser clip during TUDUM: A Netflix Global Fan Event in September 2021. In the footage, a family of four moves into a Victorian-era home as “Dream A Little Dream of Me” plays in the background. After some eery occurrences, the clip jumps ahead to the ‘80s where Gaten Matarazzo, Joe Keery, Caleb McLaughlin and Sadie Sink are looking for clues around the house.

"The world is full of obvious things, which nobody by any chance ever observes," Matarazzo’s Dustin Henderson explains in the clip, quoting Sherlock Holmes.

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Keeping It Cryptic

“We just finished shooting, and it was day 300,” Wolfhard said during an October 2021 appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. “I’m so glad [the creators] still care. The show’s going to be really messed up.”

The actor also hinted that fans can expect to find out what happened to Hopper and played coy when asked about Mike and Eleven possibly reuniting. Wolfhard simply replied, “Oh,” before mumbling, “Well, uh,” when talking about the possibility of Eleven getting her powers back.

Credit: Netflix

A Mysterious Voicemail

Stranger Things teamed up with Walmart in October 2021 to sell exclusive season 4 merchandise that will offer fans a sneak peek of what’s to come on the Netflix series. Most notably, the store is offering a cassette player that includes an “exclusive voicemail left by a mysterious character,” according to Collider.

Credit: Netflix

New Teaser

The Netflix show unveiled a new teaser for the upcoming season on “Stranger Things Day” in November 2021. In the brief clip, Millie Bobby Brown’s Eleven is back, having adapted to her brand-new school just in time for spring break. “We will have the best spring break ever,” she noted in the clip before a dramatic montage of rollerskating, police chases and explosions unfolded on screen.

Credit: Netflix

Episode Titles

The Netflix series also teased several of the episode titles via Twitter:

“The Hellfire Club” 

“Vecna’s Curse” 

“The Monster and The Superhero” 

“Dear Billy”

“The Nina Project”

“The Dive”

“The Massacre at Hawkins Lab”

“Papa”

“The Piggyback”

Credit: Netflix

Is Billy Coming Back?

Fans began to wonder whether Dacre Montgomery's character, Billy Hargrove, might be making a return during season 4 despite sacrificing himself to help his sister, Max (Sadie Sink), and the rest of the gang in season 3. An upcoming episode is titled "Dear Billy."

Credit: Netflix

Max's Moment

Sink hinted at big changes coming for the characters during season 4, telling Elle in November 2021, "I'm really happy with where Max's storyline went. ... I think you see a different side of her that I'm really excited to share with everyone."

She went on to gush about the "really good group of people" on the Netflix series' set, adding, "This cast is like my family at this point. We've been working together for so long so it's really nice, especially during the pandemic, just really appreciated being able to be in person with one another, and working together and just enjoy filming together."

Credit: Netflix

A War Is Coming

Netflix released the first trailer for season 4 in April 2022, and it looks like the Hawkins gang will need to start preparing for battle. "A war is coming. Your friends in Hawkins are very much in the eye of a storm," Dr. Owens (Paul Reiser) warns Eleven at one point. "I don’t know how to say this other than just to say it — without you, we can’t win this war." The clip also teases a monster from the Upside Down, who appears to be some kind of hybrid Demogorgon, who states menacingly at the end of the trailer: "You have lost." Meanwhile, Hopper is imprisoned in a Russian labor camp, determined to help in whatever way he can.

In addition to the otherworldly threats, the group will have to navigate the treacherous landscape of high school. Eleven and Will are in California while the rest of their friends are beginning to drift apart back in Indiana. Max, meanwhile, is dealing with the loss of her brother Billy — and what appears to be the development of new powers. With all that in store, it's no wonder the streaming service decided to split season 4 into two installments.

Credit: Anthony Harvey/Shutterstock for BAFTA

Not for Kids

Now that the cast has gotten older, the Duffer brothers aren't shying away from putting their characters in darker situations than ever before. "We thought that this was a good year to put them in a full-fledged Nightmare on Elm Street-esque horror film," Ross told Entertainment Weekly in April 2022.

The duo also referenced Game of Thrones, both because season 4's action is more intense, and the show's geographical scope has gotten much larger. "You get to see Eleven in the darkest state she's ever been," Brown said of her arc. "This has definitely been the hardest season I've ever filmed. There have been some of the scariest, scariest things that I've ever seen as a human, which you guys will get to see, for sure."

Credit: Courtesy of Netflix

New Poster

Both the official Stranger Things Instagram account Brown posted a new poster for season 4 on April 27.

The poster features the landscape of Hawkins Laboratory under a younger-looking Eleven, possibly hinting that season 4 will travel back in time to cover the telekinetic’s tragic history.

Credit: Netflix

Eleven's Origin Will Be Explained

During a May 2022 appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Brown promised that the final episodes would have "lots of answers, lots of crying, lots of laughing."

She continued, adding, "It's the beginning of the end. We really have to dig deep into [Eleven's] beginning and how she became who she is with the people around her, and how to gain that autonomy and become this woman on her own. So this storyline this season really digs into that."

Credit: Netflix

The Beginning

The show’s official Twitter account dropped the first eight minutes of the season premiere in May 2022, also revealing the episode rollout plan. The first seven episodes will drop on May 27, 2022, and the remaining two will be held until July 1, 2022.

Credit: Courtesy of Netflix

The Reason for a Divide

After Volume 1 dropped, the Duffer brothers addressed the reason for splitting season 4 into separate installments.

"The original plan was to release it all at once again. But as we began turning over episodes, everyone began to feel the season was too big to be released in one batch — at nearly 13 hours, it is really more two seasons than one," they told Variety in May 2022. "Episode 7 is as big as any season finale we’ve ever had, so it made sense to everyone involved to split the season there. Episode 7 really serves as the end of the second act — and we feel that our final act had enough meat on the bone to make up Volume 2."

At the time, the writing duo noted that they weren't expecting the wait for season 5 to be as long. "We always knew that season 4 was going to be the penultimate season, and that its ending would dovetail directly into Season 5. During the six-month pandemic hiatus, we outlined season 5 and pitched it to Netflix," they added. "Don’t hold us to it, but the gap should be quite a bit shorter this time, due to the fact that we already have an initial outline, and we can’t imagine there will be another six-month forced hiatus."

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The California Gang Can Still Hang

In a May 2022 interview with British GQ, Heaton responded after being asked about his character, Jonathan Byers, not having as much involvement during the first half of season 4.

“I know why you’re asking that, and I’ve definitely seen some forums like Screen Rant or something — ‘What happened to the character?'" the New Mutants actor explained. “It is an ensemble cast; obviously every season they’ve brought in new characters, wonderful characters, and they’ve taken the story to different places.”

The England native added that the newest installment of the Netflix hit has Jonathan “questioning himself and his relationship,” noting that he’s aware of the fan support for the couple and how it connects to his real life relationship with Natalia Dyer, who also plays his girlfriend Nancy Wheeler on screen.

“You want the people to be invested in them,” he admitted. “Sometimes it blurs into one. Me and Natalia have been together for a long time, so you’ve even got to separate it yourself sometimes.”

Credit: Tina Rowden/Netflix © 2022

Changing the Music Landscape

Kate Bush’s 1985 hit “Running Up That Hill (Deal With God)” soared to No. 1 on the iTunes chart after being heavily featured in part 1 of the show's fourth installment.

The song plays a significant purpose in the premiere episode of season 4 and continues to resonate throughout Max’s story.

Shawn Levy, an executive producer on the series, took to his Instagram Story​​ to commemorate the song's newfound popularity. “Our job here is done,” he captioned a screenshot of the music charts showing Bush in the No. 1 slot.

Credit: Tina Rowden/Netflix

Potential Deaths

"I don’t really want to say, but I would be concerned about the characters going into Volume 2, for sure. I hope that that is sort of the sense, because it is a darker season and the kids are no longer kids," Ross teased during an interview with Variety in June 2022. "So everybody is in danger. And there’s sort of an ominous feeling that things might not go well. Now, whether they do or not, you’ll have to watch."

Credit: Courtesy of Netflix

Character Regrets

During an interview in June 2022, the Duffer Brothers revealed that the chemistry between Chrissy and Eddie later made them question her death scene.

"We always have those moments. We shot the drug deal scene in the woods pretty late, actually, into shooting." Matt told TVLine.com at the time, before praising the duo for their onscreen connection. "It was just one of those fortunate scenes where we were able to have two cameras rolling capturing them simultaneously. Joe was doing a lot of stuff spontaneously, and we were getting these amazing reactions from Grace."

Credit: Courtesy of Netflix © 2022

An Emotional Finale

During a June 2022 interview with TVLine, the Duffers revealed that volume 2 of the show’s fourth season “has a little bit of everything,” but warned it would be “extremely emotional while also having the most action and spectacle we’ve ever had.”

The brothers added that while Quinn’s depiction of the final two episodes being “a mad symphony of chaos” was “eloquent” and smart, things will feel “like a blockbuster spectacle." "There is a lot of “time spent dealing with our characters," they explained. 

“Hopefully, it’s satisfying for people,” Matt said at the time. “I’ve stopped trying to predict how people are going to react because you never know.”

Credit: Stranger Things/YouTube

A Glimpse at the Conclusion

Ahead of the second installment of season 4, Netflix shared a promo teasing a showdown between Eleven and Vecna. "It is over, Eleven. You have freed me. You can't stop this now," the season's newest villain says in the clip, released in June 2022.

The trailer featured scenes of Hopper helping Murray and Joyce after his escape from a Russian labor camp. Robin and Steve are also seen with Nancy after Volume 1 ended with her falling under Vecna's curse.

Credit: Courtesy of Netflix

Getting Ready for Battle

In stills from Volume 2, which were released in June 2022, viewers were offered a glimpse at an intense moment between Max and Lucas. Another photo showed Eleven and Dr. Brenner sharing a conversation after she learns about Vecna's true identity.

Fans also saw the California crew continue on their road trip to save Hawkins while Joyce, Hopper and Murray are joined by Dmitri after breaking out of the Russian labor camp.

Credit: Tina Rowden/Netflix

The Aftermath of Steve's Injury

“Everybody’s always worried about Steve. I love it,” Matt told TVLine in June 2022. “We always have to beat Steve up somehow, so certainly the Demobats have done that job pretty well already this season.”

Ross, for his part, added, “It feels wrong to say ‘excited,’ but I’m excited that people are concerned. And they should be concerned going into the final two episodes [of season 4] — for everybody.”

Credit: Stranger Things/YouTube

Looming Danger

Ahead of Volume 2, Netflix released a trailer showing the characters getting ready for battle in Hawkins. The montage teases Nancy coming face-to-face with Vecna in a hospital, Eddie getting ready for a guitar solo in the Upside Down and Robin asking Steve if this might be the end for them.

Credit: Netflix

Last Minute Changes

"In terms of who makes it, who lives or dies. I think there was a version where Dimitri, AKA Enzo, didn't make it," Matt told Collider in July 2022 about the original plans for season 4. "Then he ended up making it. But that's [the most] radical of a departure from the original idea versus what we ended up with."

Credit: Courtesy Netflix

A Musical Moment

In July 2022, Metallica showed their support for Eddie's rendition of “Master of Puppets” during volume 2.

“The way The Duffer Brothers have incorporated music into Stranger Things has always been next level, so we were beyond psyched for them to not only include ‘Master of Puppets’ in the show, but to have such a pivotal scene built around it,” the band wrote via an Instagram statement. “We were all stoked to see the final result and when we did we were totally blown away… it’s so extremely well done, so much so, that some folks were able to guess the song just by seeing a few seconds of Joseph Quinn’s hands in the trailer!! How crazy cool is that?”

Credit: Netflix

Almost Permanent

After viewers watched Max almost die, the Duffer Brothers revealed they originally didn't intend to have Eleven bring her best friend back to life. “[Max's death] was discussed as a possibility,” Ross told Variety in July 2022. “For a while that is what was going to happen. But we ended up in this — we wanted to end it with a little more of a question at the end of the season. It’s still really dark and if Max is going to be OK, we just don’t really know. We wanted to leave it up in the air moving forward into Season 5.”

Matt, for his part, pointed out that the story was meant to have some of the characters fail in their journey. “We wanted them to actually lose. We wanted our characters to experience what that felt like. That was the big idea coming into Season 4, that they were going to lose. We were going to introduce Vecna and they were going to lose to him," he added. "That sets our characters up for what will be the ultimate final confrontation with Vecna and with the Upside Down in Season 5.”