WARNING: The following contains SPOILERS for Stranger Things season 4, part 1. 

Stranger Things season 4, part 2 is coming, and here's everything we know regarding the release date, story, and cast. During the mid-season break, many have wondered who will return for Stranger Things season 4, part 2, what to expect, and how the gang will defeat Vecna once and for all. The newest installment has been released in two volumes. The first came out on May 27th, 2022, while the second is set for July 1st, 2022. After Stranger Things season 3, the series went on an unusually long hiatus due to COVID-19, explaining a six-month gap between the events of seasons 3 and 4 – and fans have faced a second wait to conclude season 4. Stranger Things season 4, part 2 sees Steve and Nancy stuck in the Upside Down, Hopper returning from Russia, Eleven regaining her powers, and Vecna opening even more gates to unleash extra-dimensional horrors on Hawkins.

Stranger Things is a show unlike any other, and the scope of the series has grown to epic proportions (as evidenced by season 4, part 1). It is a fantastic blend of teenage adventure, classic horror tropes, and 1980s nostalgia. Netflix released Stranger Things season 1 in 2016, and it became an instant hit for the streaming service. When showrunners Matt and Ross Duffer initially signed up to do the series, they assumed they'd only get a single season. In fact, they'd initially planned to kill Eleven. The series lived on, with Stranger Things season 2 often being praised as the best installment. Since then, though, they've developed a long-term strategy that sees the series ending with Stranger Things season 5.

Related: Stranger Things 4's Ending Setup Supports A Tragic Upside Down Theory

Season 4, part 1 showed an epic story unfolding as Vecna threatens the city of Hawkins, while providing many of the hilarious team-ups, genuine scares, and monumental soundtrack choices that made the show's best-received chapter, season 2, such an exciting batch of episodes and cranked up anticipation for the feature-length concluding double feature. The wait for part 2 will soon be over, so here's everything we know about Stranger Things season 4, what to expect, the release date and time, story details, characters, and more.

Stranger Things Season 4, Part 2 Release Date And Time

Steve and Nancy in the Upside Down in Stranger Things Season 4

Stranger Things season 4 has two release dates. On February 17, 2022, Netflix announced that Stranger Things season 4 would release in two parts. The first premiered on May 27, 2022, while the second will land on Netflix just a few weeks later, on July 1, 2022, at 12 AM EST. It's been confirmed that Stranger Things season 5 will be the show's last, so season 4, part 2, will see the narrative shift in a significant way to set up an epic conclusion for the smash-hit series.

Stranger Things Season 4 Part 2 Story Details: What Part 1 Sets Up

Steve, Eddie, Nancy, & Robin in the Upside Down

When it comes to Stranger Things season 4, what to expect in part 2 is set up by the part 1 finale – the gang embarked on a wild ride of discovery both internally and externally. Stranger Things season 4 part 1 started with the group separated for the first time. Will and Eleven both started at their new high school in California, and were immediate outcasts. Eleven, in particular, faced the worst of the bullies, until finally hitting the main perpetrator in the head with a roller skate. She was taken back by Dr. Brenner to restore her powers, and placed into the NINA machine to access her memories to get them back. During this time, she encountered a kind orderly – Number 1/Henry Creel – who turned out to be Vecna.

Meanwhile, during Stranger Things season 4, part 1, Vecna is wreaking havoc on Hawkins in the form of a curse and by creating portals all throughout the town to the Upside Down. These portals pop up wherever someone dies at the hands of the Upside Down creature, and he manages to kill off three students. This prompts the town to blame Steve for Chrissy Cunningham's death, and Hawkins decides to go on a witch hunt. Vecna initially curses Max, but she can block out his trance when the gang forces her to listen to music she loves. Not only could she escape his clutches, but she also found a backdoor to Vecna's lair in the Upside Down: The Creel House. On top of all this, Mike and Dustin join Eddie's D&D club, while struggling to identify with Caleb's newfound popularity as a member of the basketball team.

Related: Stranger Things 4 Vol 2 Repeats A Season 3 Billy Trick (But With Max)

Finally, in Stranger Things season 4, part 1, Hopper is held in a Russian prison that's making its prisoners fight against a Demogorgon. Joyce receives a message confirming that Hopper is still alive, so she and Murray, Stranger Thing season 4's MVP, make their way to Russia and are able to break into the prison with a bit of help from a new "friend" named Yuri. While they make it to Russia and free Hopper, they'll undoubtedly have a rough time making it out, as their plane is in ruins.

Stranger Things Season 4 Cast

Joe Quinn as Eddie Munson in Stranger Things Season 4

Stranger Things season 4, part 2 will see the return of many recurring characters:

  • Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven
  • Finn Wolfhard as Mike Wheeler
  • Gaten Matarazzo as Dustin Henderson
  • Caleb McLaughlin as Lucas Sinclair
  • Noah Schnapp as Will Byers
  • Sadie Sink as Max Mayfield
  • David Harbour as Jim Hopper
  • Winona Ryder as Joyce Byers
  • Natalia Dyer as Nancy Wheeler
  • Charlie Heaton as Jonathan Byers
  • Jamie Campbell Bower as Henry Creel/Vecna
  • Priah Ferguson as Erica Sinclair
  • Brett Gelman as Murray Bauman
  • Tom Wlaschiha as Dmitri
  • Nikola Djuricko as Yuri
  • Joseph Quinn as Eddie Munson
  • Robert Englund as Victor Creel
  • Raphael Luce as Young Henry Creel
  • Paul Reiser as Doctor Owens
  • Eduardo Franco as Argyle
  • Gabriella Pizzolo as Suzie
  • Matthew Modine as Dr. Brenner

Where The Main Characters Are Going Into Stranger Things Season 4 Part 2

Stranger Things season 4 part 2 will follow up on the new alliances from the first part. Stranger Things season 4, part 1 left off with Nancy and Steve trapped in the Upside Down. After traveling through a portal to the Upside Down at the bottom of the lake, Nancy, Steve, Eddie, and Robin all had to make their way through the dimension to find an opening back to the real world at Steve's trailer. Dustin, Max, Caleb, and Erica provide a way out of the Upside Down via a mattress and a bedsheet. While Robin and Eddie made their way out, Nancy was put into a trance by Vecna and forced to relive Barb's tragic death from season 1. Stranger Things season 4 part 2 will hopefully see Nancy and Steve escape from the Upside Down, with Nancy being broken out of Vecna's trance. 

Meanwhile, Mike, Will, Suzie, Jonathan, and Argyle are sent coordinates to a town in Nevada on their quest to find Eleven. However, they aren't the only ones hot on Eleven's trail: Sullivan and the U.S. Government, who believe Eleven is responsible for everything happening in Hawkins, are also on their way to find her. Hopper, Murray, and Joyce have successfully evaded the Demogorgon and need to make their way out of the Russian prison and back to Hawkins. One way they could do this (possibly), is by finding a portal to the Upside Down. Finally, Eleven has uncovered what actually happened during the Hawkins Lab massacre, how to get her powers back, and the realization that she essentially created Vecna. In Part 2, Eleven will have to go back into Hawkins armed with this knowledge (and her powers) and defeat Vecna once and for all. 

Related: Stranger Things’ Biggest Death Trend Hints At Major Season 4 Ending Twist

Stranger Things Season 4’s Monster: What We Know About Vecna

The Stranger Things season 4 villain Vecna looks surprisingly human — and that's because he previously was one. The origins of the mysterious villain were revealed at the end of part 1. Before he became Vecna, the leader of the Upside Down, he was a boy with extraordinary powers and a mean streak named Henry Creel. After killing his mother and sister and sending his dad to an asylum, he was taken by Dr. Brenner and Hawkins Lab for further testing. When they found that they really couldn't control Henry, they installed a chip in his neck that controls his state of mind. Henry then befriended Eleven and even helped her break out of the Lab — though not before killing everyone in it. In a fit of rage, Eleven banished Henry to the Upside Down, where he eventually transformed into Vecna. All this information was recovered from Eleven's memory while in the NINA machine.

Unlike the Mind Flayer, Vecna is capable of speech and critical thought. He likens himself to a black widow spider, and the rest of humanity as his prey. He steals into the minds of Hawkins' townspeople to make them relive their worst memories and any guilt they experience from them. Several Hawkins students are murdered at his hand, and he uses the murders to create portals around Hawkins. When it comes to Stranger Things season 4 part 2's confirmed story, Vecna will be trying to make more portals and now has Nancy captive.

Next: Stranger Things 4 Revealed Its Best Spinoff (& It's Not What You Expect)

Stranger Things season 4, part 2, will air on July 1st, 2022, at 3AM EST.

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