The new season will be released in two batches, with the first seven episodes dropping May 27.
Ahead of Stranger Things’ anticipated return with season 4, Netflix released the first eight minutes of the upcoming premiere -- taking audiences back in time to Eleven’s (Millie Bobby Brown) days in the Hawkins Laboratory. But it’s a glimpse at the past that viewers may not be expecting.
In the opening scene, Matthew Modine returns as Martin Brenner, the lead scientist in charge of the laboratory where they’re conducting experiments and research on Eleven as well as the many children that came before her.
During a routine session with Ten, things quickly go wrong when he telepathically sees a bloody massacre. “They’re screaming,” he says, before revealing that “Six and Dr. Ellis are dead. They’re both dead.”
That’s when Brenner discovers that everyone in the research facility is dead -- except for one person: Eleven, who has blood coming out of her eyes. “What have you done?” Brenner asks before the scene cuts to black.
The opening eight minutes is a clear indicator of where things are headed this season, as Stranger Things embraces a darker, more mature tone while also connecting the dots of Eleven’s past with the events of the present.
“There’s a lot of supernatural, crazy elements going on,” Maya Hawke teases to ET, with Natalia Dyer adding that this season, “There are characters who are in real, real danger.”
According to the streaming platform, the new season will pick up six months after the events of season 3, which ended with the epic showdown at the Starcourt mall. “Struggling with the aftermath, our group of friends are separated for the first time – and navigating the complexities of high school hasn't made things any easier. In this most vulnerable time, a new and horrifying supernatural threat surfaces, presenting a gruesome mystery that, if solved, might finally put an end to the horrors of the Upside Down.”
In addition to Brown, Dyer, Hawke and Modine returning as Eleven, Nancy Wheeler, Robin Buckley and Dr. Brenner, respectively, season 4 also stars Winona Ryder (Joyce Byers), David Harbour (Jim Hopper), Finn Wolfhard (Mike Wheeler), Gaten Matarazzo (Dustin Henderson), Caleb McLaughlin (Lucas Sinclair), Noah Schnapp (Will Byers), Sadie Sink (Max Mayfield), Charlie Heaton (Jonathan Byers), Joe Keery (Steve Harrington), Priah Ferguson (Erica Sinclair), Brett Gelman (Murray) and Cara Buono (Karen Wheeler).
And among the many new faces seen this season, Freddy Krueger actor Robert Englund appears as the mysterious Victor Creel, reminding audiences this season is a real nightmare, so to speak.
Along with releasing the first eight minutes of season 4, Netflix also confirmed that the first seven episodes will debut on May 27 while the remaining two episodes will be released on July 1.
Stranger Things season 4, volume 1 premieres May 27.
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