Stranger Things star Finn Wolfhard teases the difficulties that Mike and Eleven will face as they navigate a long-distance relationship in season 4. The upcoming season of the paranormal drama series is supersized and will release in two volumes, with the first half dropping on Netflix on May 27. That is nearly three years after Stranger Things season 3. The most recent trailer teased the Upside Down’s hostile attempt to take over Hawkins, a new threat that will inevitably reunite Mike and Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) at some point in the season.
Believing her adoptive father Hopper (David Harbour) to be dead at the end of Stranger Things season 3, Eleven was taken under the care of Joyce Byers (Winona Ryder) and made the move to California with the Byers family, leaving Hawkins and Mike behind. The trailer suggests that ally Dr. Sam Owens (Paul Reiser) suggested the Byers' move away to keep them safe, considering Eleven’s often volatile connection with the Upside Down and how her powers could make her a Russian target. However, the Stranger Things season 4 trailer also teases that Eleven is the only one who can save her friends from the “eye of the storm.”
Mike and Eleven’s extended time apart is likely to cause a lot of heartache for both of them, as well as fans who have been invested in their relationship for so long. In a virtual set visit during the filming of Stranger Things season 4 last year, Screen Rant participated in a group interview involving Wolfhard, where he discussed the trials the two characters will face being so far from each other. The actor stated that he couldn’t imagine “long distance in the 80s,” calling Mike and Eleven's long separation “impossible” to deal with because the two characters mean so much to each other. Read his full quote about their long-distance relationship and what makes them so special below:
“It’s one of those things that… it’s impossible. It’s with anyone, like having a mom or dad - they’re there. It’s like air. They’re just a part of your life. You can’t just pretend it never happened, and there’s an effort there that Mike and Eleven, because they’re so in love and they love each other so much and they’ve gone through so much together, that it’s like… you know? Also, in an incredible and deeply sad way, because they haven’t had anyone else. That’s what’s so beautiful about it because they don’t have a normal life. It’s the way that it is for them and that’s what makes it so special. I can’t imagine long distance in the ‘80s. I could not imagine-“
Mike and Eleven have reunited after a long separation before, as El was secretly in Hopper’s care for much of the time between Stranger Things season 1 and a few episodes into season 2. However, all that they’ve been through together since then makes their most recent time apart even more heartbreaking. The beginnings of Stranger Things season 4 will undoubtedly deal with the impact of their distance from each other, as the first teaser trailer hinted at when it opened with Eleven narrating a letter to Mike.
Thankfully, the most recent Stranger Things season 4 trailer has further confirmed that Mike and Eleven will be reunited at some point, with a glimpse of a brief scene of Eleven secretly returning to Hawkins and another one in which the pair go roller-skating. However, the toll that this new threat to Hawkins might take on their relationship remains to be seen. Mike and Eleven have already had their fair share of trials and tribulations, but with Stranger Things season 4 promising to be bigger, scarier and stranger than ever, who knows what’s next for one of the series’ core couples.
Stranger Things season 4, part 1 premieres Friday, May 27 on Netflix.
Source: Stranger Things set visit