Stranger Things Star Says Season 4 Is Funniest and Scariest Season Yet

With any new season of a TV series, a major goal is to take what worked about previous seasons and amplify all of these elements, so it comes as little surprise that Stranger Things star Finn Wolfhard is once again detailing that Season 4 of the Netflix series is its most horrifying yet. Interestingly, the actor also noted that the unsettling subject matter isn't the only thing being amplified, as matching the heightening of the horror is also its humor, which fans of the series know is just as important to the series as its dark and disturbing concepts. Season 4 of Stranger Things is set to hit Netflix in summer of 2022.

"I think because we've all grown and gotten a little older; we're not teenagers anymore, and all of us are young adults. Every season [creators] the Duffers have been like going into scarier and pretty violent territory. This season is going to be easily the darkest season," Wolfhard shared with ScreenRant. "It's weird, because they amp up everything every season. And so it's the funniest season. It has one of the funniest storylines, like, full-blown, almost comedy. And then there's another storyline that's complete, absolute horror. But not sci-fi; it's a horror. It's really scary, and I'm excited for people to see that."

The first season of the series debuted in 2016 and its young cast largely played characters in the early years of Junior High. While it will have been six years that have passed since that first season premiered, Season 4 only takes place three years later in the continuity of the franchise itself, with there being a three-year gap between Season 3 and Season 4.

The series never intended to have such an extended wait, but it was just one of many productions that faced extended delays due to the coronavirus pandemic. 

Production on Season 4 began in early 2020, likely aiming for a release later in the year or in early 2021. However, the series had reportedly only been shooting for weeks before things were shut down in response to the pandemic. 

While fans were understandably disappointed with this extended wait, it presented the writing team with the unique position to be able to complete the scripts for the entire season before shooting resumed, as opposed to the traditional schedule of finishing later episodes while filming the earlier episodes.

"Normally, we get the first few scripts, and then they have to keep writing due to the schedule of it," Dyer shared with The Hollywood Reporter last year. "And it takes a while to craft a script. So, normally, there's a kind of 'writing as we're going,' but it seems they've had enough time. I think it's maybe been a blessing for the writers, in some way, because they had the time to just sit down, think, and create. So, yeah, it appears to be that they've got it all down."  

Stay tuned for details on Season 4 of Stranger Things before it debuts in the summer of 2022.

Are you excited for the new season? Let us know in the comments below or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!