Stranger Things creators, Matt and Ross Duffer, recently teased how season 5 will be like season 1. The 80's-themed science-fiction horror television series debuted on Netflix in 2016 and immediately became a hit with critics and audiences. After a boy goes missing in a small town, a group of friends and a police chief begin their search and uncover a vast government conspiracy involving a parallel dimension and a telepathic girl. The following seasons took the form of a coming-of-age story set against the backdrop of monsters and horror. Stranger Things season 4 proved to be one of the most-watched television series in the streaming service's history, breaking multiple records.
Speaking on an FYC panel (via Variety), Ross teased how the upcoming Stranger Things season 5 will be more like season 1. Although the writer and creator admitted that the fifth and final season will take elements from all seasons before and will share a scale to that of season 4, he explained that they were going to take the show back to the beginning in terms of tone. Read more of what Ross said below:
“Five, the way we see it, is kind of a culmination of all the seasons, so it’s sort of got a little bit from each. Whereas before each season was so distinctly… [Season] 3 is our big summer blockbuster season with big monsters, and [Season] 4 was the psychological horror. I think that what we’re trying to do is go back to the beginning a little bit, in sort of the tone of 1.”
Can Stranger Things Recapture Season 1’s Tone After Massive Season 4?
Season 4 found the Hawkins heroes separated with Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) and the Byers family in California, Hopper (David Harbour) in a Russian prison camp, and the rest of the group back in Indiana. Through the use of varying sets and stunning practical and visual effects, the sense of scale for the season was massive. With a reported budget of $30 million per episode ($270 million total), Stranger Things season 4 proved to be the series' biggest season yet, eclipsing the likes of Top Gun: Maverick which had a reported budget of $170 million.
Although season 1 had science-fiction elements and interdimensional monsters, its story was smaller in scale than its following seasons, focusing primarily on the happenings within Hawkins. Season 4 concluded with the group returning to their hometown to find it ravaged by gates to the Upside-Down opened during Vecna's (Jamie Campbell Bower) defeat. With Eleven's old enemy still lurking in the alternate dimension, and the portals to the other world open, likely allowing demogorgons through, the Hawkins group will have their hands full as they attempt to close the gates and pull their friend Max (Sadie Sink) out of her coma.
With Stranger Things season 5 set to begin shooting next year, not much is known about the story of the final season, although expectations are high due to the success of season 4. The Duffers will need to handle the final season with care if it would like to maintain the scale of season 4 while wrapping up every storyline developed over the course of the five seasons. Recently, Netflix revealed the title for season 5's premiere episode as "The Crawl." With no additional information provided, fans can only speculate as to what the title means for the upcoming season. Bower previously teased that Vecna will be coming back with a vengeance and the episode's title may refer to his journey back from his banishment by Eleven. With Stranger Things season 5 likely to return in 2024, audiences will have to a little longer to see how the popular Netflix show reaches its conclusion.
Source: Variety