It’s been months since the new season of Stranger Things premiered, but we finally have a teaser trailer and first episode title for season 4. Here’s everything we know about the next installment, including a favorite character’s return.
Warning: Contains spoilers for Stranger Things 3.
Has a fourth season of Stranger Things been confirmed?
On September 30, 2019, Netflix confirmed another installment with an ominous teaser video. All that appears in the 45-second clip is the Stranger Things 4 logo along with the foreboding tagline: “We’re not in Hawkins anymore.” This teases a possible new locale for the next season, as well as uncharted territory for the central characters.
On February 14, 20202, the Duffer Brothers gave fans the ultimate gift: an update on season 4 production. They released a teaser of the next installment captioned, “From Russia with love…”
Will Hopper return in Stranger Things season 4?
Another Valentine’s Day surprise? Confirmation of the return of Hopper (David Harbour). The new teaser features his character, and the creators released the following statement:
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! 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. Meanwhile, back in the states, a new horror is beginning to surface, something long buried, something that connects everything…
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.
From Russia with love, The Duffer Brothers.
What is the title of the first Stranger Things 4 episode?
On November 6, the Stranger Things writers revealed the title of the upcoming season’s first episode. Called “Chapter One: The Hellfire Club,” it spells dark times ahead for Eleven and the rest of the Hawkins gang. The tweet that accompanied the announcement reads, “looking for new members…are you in?”
The Sun notes that the Hellfire Club is also what a group of X-Men villains are referred to in the Dark Phoenix comics of the ’80s. In it, Emma Frost attempts to lure Jean Grey, who shares telepath capabilities just like Eleven, to the dark side. Many are speculating Eleven will be similarly tempted in the new season.
What does Natalia Dyer, aka Nancy, know about season 4?
ELLE.com recently caught up with Natalia Dyer, who plays Nancy on Stranger Things, about her hopes for the new season and her character. “I see her as this person in pursuit of information and justice and I can’t see her putting that investigative nose down,” Dyer said. “I loved seeing the sensitive side of Nancy and the badass side of Nancy. I hope she’s still going strong and her instincts and her passion remains intact.”
As for loose ends from the third season she’d like to see resolved? “Obviously what happens to Hopper, but also the Byers move away—what’s that going to be like, especially since everyone is in a relationship?” she wondered. “I feel like long-distance is hard nowadays, so imagine long-distance relationships back then.” Dyer even speculated that Nancy could reunite with Steve. “I’d love to see if her and Steve would ever get back together, or at least if they get closure. Will their chapter ever close? I’m very curious. Also, I want her to get a female friend. RIP Barb.”
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Will season 4 be the final season of Stranger Things?
The series’ creators, the Duffer brothers, told Vulture in 2017 that season 4 could be the end of the series. “We’re thinking it will be a four-season thing and then out,” Ross Duffer said. His brother, Matt, followed: “I don’t know if we can justify something bad happening to them once a year.”
But executive producer Shawn Levy seemed to tease a different outcome. “There’s very much the possibility of a season beyond that one, that’s currently undecided,” he told Collider. “And what I would just say is part of the chaos and fun of this particular show is that while the Duffers and the writer’s room and we producers outline the entire season, the Duffers really use the writing process to revisit, reassess, and question all of their prior assumptions.”
What’s the release date?
There’s no set release date yet. As Inverse pointed out, the series has had a pretty predictable release schedule; it first premiered in the summer of 2016. Next, it came back in the fall of 2017 and then again in the summer of 2019. With that pattern, it’s a good guess that we will see season 4 in the fall of 2020.
Until we know for sure, the Stranger Things writers’ Twitter has had fun teasing fans about the release date.
Which cast members will return?
This show is nothing without the young teens that lead it, so expect to see the usual crew: Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown), Mike (Finn Wolfhard), Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo), Will (Noah Schnapp), Lucas (Caleb McLaughlin), and Max (Sadie Sink). Plus, Variety reported on February 21 that Priah Ferguson, who plays Lucas’s little sister Erica, has been promoted to series regular. She’ll be bringing her signature humor and not-not-nerdy knowhow to more death-defying moments.
Though it’s a little unclear about what their role will be now, there’s no reason why the older teens won’t show up as well: Steve (Joe Keery), Nancy (Natalia Dyer), Jonathan (Charlie Heaton), and Robin (Maya Hawke).
The grown-ups, who really stepped up to save the day this time around, will surely be back in full force, so expect to see Joyce (Winona Ryder), Karen (Cara Buono), and Murray (Brett Gelman).
What questions will season 4 have to answer?
If we do get a season 4 in 2020, then we’ve got some questions.
What monsters will be back?
The Mind Flayer appears to be gone, but each season, something worse than the last appears. If the Duffers are really going to end with season 4, then the final creature will be a doozy. We do know there’s still a Demogorgon out there somewhere in Russia—could there be others, or is there a way to reproduce them?
And with Will and Eleven now away from the monster epicenter of Hawkins, where will we see future creatures? Can monsters travel outside of Hawkins? Could the crew even travel to Russia?
What happened to Hopper?
Now that we know he’s in Kamchatka, it’s going to be really hard to wait for more info about his fate.
Will the core group stay friends?
At the end of season 3, we see the Byers family—plus Eleven—move out of Hawkins. Throughout the season we already saw signs of the original friend group growing apart, like Dustin feeling left out and Will feeling distant from the others because of their girl troubles. With Will and Eleven now on their way elsewhere, what will happen to this team?
Will will become of the older kids?
Nancy, Jonathan, Steve, and Robin are all moving on to the next steps in their lives. They’ve stood by their younger siblings through all this crazy monster stuff, so they’re sure to be in the mix somewhere. Now that Nancy and Jonathan have been fired from the Hawkins Post, what’s next? Will Steve become some kind of movie aficionado? And will Robin ever get to tell Tammy Thompson about her love?
Stranger Things is streaming now on Netflix.