According to the Duffer Brothers season 4, of Stranger Things‘ storyline will feel like a ‘Nightmare on Elm Street-esque horror film’.
In an interview with the directing duo, the highly-anticipated return of the show – which is due to hit Netflix on May 27, will be their ‘darkest yet’ as the cast move from being kids to young adults.
‘Horror Film’ Darkness
In the interview, the brothers discuss how this season will be the ‘scariest’ yet due to more of the story being ‘uncovered’. Ross Duffer explained the dread of the group splitting up at the end of season 3 and Hopper being taken before saying: ‘We continue with that darkness this season.
‘It’s about dread, and it’s also about revelations. We have so many ideas that we accumulate over the years, and this season it feels like we’re finally bringing almost all of them to life.
‘We learn more this season than we ever have about our mythology. We learn a lot about the Upside Down and what this evil force that’s been threatening Hawkins all these years really wants. It’s exciting for us, because a lot of the story is uncovered this season. Overall, I would say that the tone is certainly darker than it’s been. The goal was to make this the scariest season yet.’
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But it’s his brother Matt who really promises blockbuster darkness when he said the season will have a storyline that feels like a ‘Nightmare on Elm Street-esque horror film’.
‘We’re always trying something different each season to make sure the show is evolving,’ Matt said, ‘And that comes naturally in a lot of ways because our kids are growing up. It’s funny, I can’t even actually call them “kids,” they’re basically young adults now. We thought that this was a good year to put them in what is basically a horror film.
‘Ross mentioned that dread is a big part of this season. What the teens are dealing with, especially in the Hawkins storyline, is a full-fledged Nightmare on Elm Street-esque horror film. A lot of that has to do with the new villain this year, a more humanoid-looking monster in the vein of classic supernatural serial killers. That’s another huge defining factor for this season.’
More time in the Upside Down
One thing viewers are promised to get answers about is the Upside Down. Fans have been wondering about the world beneath our own since Barb was taken all the way back in season 1 – why is it there? Was it created? What are the creatures that dwell there?
Well, the brothers promise viewers will learn more about the world in the upcoming season. Matt said: ‘We spend more time in the Upside Down this year than we ever have before.
‘We love shooting scenes in the Upside Down. We always love how they turn out. And we didn’t get to go to the Upside Down at all in Season 3. When Will was gone all of Season 1, we didn’t really get to see what he was experiencing, or how he was communicating with Joyce. This year, we really wanted to explore a little bit of how that worked, and we wanted to see it from the side of the Upside Down.’
Ross added: ‘It’s also fun just hopping back and forth between these dimensions. When we were looking back at our original Stranger Things pitch, we had the kids going through multiple portals or gates, going back and forth from this dimension. We never had the time to do that in Season 1, but we’re still really excited about that idea.’
Reaching the endgame
Lastly, Ross talks about the series really feeling like it’s finally coming to an end – even if fans would love it to continue forever.
He said: ‘You can feel the story barreling towards some sort of endgame or conclusion. That’s what is really exciting to us about this season. We had a lot of fun in Season Three, but now it’s really serious in terms of actually starting to peel back the layers of this mythology.
‘And as you get these answers, you really see that we’re headed towards a very clear destination, and toward the end of Stranger Things. Which is a little sad, but also exciting for us, and I think for everyone involved.’
