Stranger Things star Charlie Heaton recently addressed Jonathan Byers' season 4 storyline complaints. Heaton returns to Stranger Things as the love-struck Jonathan. After a nearly three-year gap, the science-fiction horror 80's-themed show has returned to Netflix to find the teenage heroes once again battling the dark forces of the Upside-Down parallel dimension. However, the Byers family, including Eleven (Millie Bobby-Brown), have relocated following the Battle of Starcourt. As a result, many have found Jonathan's story pushed down the narrative totem pole, and his character substantially changed from his previous portrayals.
Set six months after the events of season 3, Jonathan finds himself separated by over 2,000 miles from his love interest, Nancy Wheeler (Natalia Dyer). Although there is a significant distance between them, the two struggle to stay close emotionally. Jonathan and Nancy initially planned to go to Emerson College in Massachusetts together, but their time apart has the couple questioning their directions in life. Jonathan's enrollment in Emerson would put him in financial debt and commit himself to a dream that isn't his. And if he chooses to attend the local community college, Jonathan runs the risk of having Nancy follow him to a school that does not suit her talents. Jonathan's dilemma has him delaying the inevitable confrontation by hanging out with his pothead friend and indulging in marijuana.
In a recent interview with GQ, Heaton addressed complaints regarding his character's storyline in Stranger Things season 4. Jonathan was once the unlikely hero of the first few seasons of the show, an unassuming photographer who rises to the occasion and gets the most popular girl in school. However, his turn back to the very apprehensive character that he once overcame has people questioning his character arc. Read how Heaton responded below.
"I know why you’re asking that. And I’ve definitely seen some forums like Screenrant or something – ‘What happened to the character?’ It is an ensemble cast, obviously every season they’ve brought in new characters, wonderful characters, and they’ve taken the story to different places."
"We find him in a place of questioning himself and his relationship. You want the people to be invested in them. Sometimes it blurs into one. Me and Natalia have been together for a long time, so you’ve even got to separate it yourself sometimes."
Heaton rightly explains that Stranger Things is an ensemble show that adds new characters every season. It must balance the introductions of those characters while advancing the overarching plot and developing the established characters through their arcs. The need to build the foundation for the season's story while continuing to advance the main character's storylines has ballooned Stranger Things season 4 into its biggest season yet. The runtimes for each episode surpass the one-hour-minute mark, with the final episode of the season clocking in at nearly two and a half hours.
Although Jonathan's character initially seemed to only smoke weed and waste time with his friend Argyle (Eduardo Franco) at the beginning of Stranger Things season 4, he quickly took charge after Eleven was arrested and taken by a mysterious government force. Even though he is far removed from the main story in Hawkins, Indiana, his own story is pulling him closer to reuniting with Eleven and thus Nancy when Stranger Things season 4 comes to a close on July 1.
Source: GQ