‘Stranger Things 4’ Will Be More Horror-Heavy Than Past Seasons, Duffer Brothers Say

Ahead of the arrival of Stranger Things 4, the Duffer brothers are starting to reveal what fans can expect from the hugely anticipated season. 

“I think they’ll be happy when they see it. It’s very, very long, which is why it’s taking us a very long time,” Ross Duffer told Netflix’s Tudum, adding that some fan theories he’s come across have been “startlingly” accurate. “I’m constantly impressed with how sharp the fans are, and how quickly they’re able to put something together with very, very little information.”

The Duffer brothers remained tight-lipped on what those theories are, but they did tease that Season 4 will have a darker “horror movie” feel to it.

“When we pitched it to Netflix all those years ago, we pitched it as the kids are… The Goonies in E.T.,” Ross explained. “That’s their storyline. And the adults are in Jaws and Close Encounters and then the teens are in Nightmare on Elm Street or Halloween. But, this year, we don’t have the kids. We can’t do The Goonies anymore. And so, suddenly, we’re leaning much harder into that horror movie territory that we love. It was fun to make that change.”

To coincide with the interview, Netflix also previewed some images from the new season, which will debut its first of two volumes on May 27.

To add to the horror tone of the show, beloved Freddy Krueger actor Robert Englund will show up in the new episodes. Set to pick up six months after the events of Season 3, which aired all the way back in 2019, the cast of characters are no longer just in Hawkins, Indiana. Hopper, at least going by the recent trailers, is stuck in Russia, while Eleven and the Byers have moved to a new school. 

Stranger Things 4 has been a long time coming, and like many other shows, it faced big production hiccups when the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Last month, Netflix announced that Season 4 had been split into two volumes, the first arriving in May and the second on July 1. The creators also confirmed that the show has been renewed for a fifth and final season.