First came the release date announcement during the Super Bowl. Then, the reveal of Eleven’s new hairdo. And now, it’s time for the first bit of concrete details about the plot of Stranger Things‘ highly-anticipated second season.
As those killer Ghostbusters costumes in the teaser trailer hinted at, the new season will pick up about a year after the first, on Halloween, EW reports. And though Will Byers (Noah Schnapp) may have been reunited with his friends and family, he’s still finding himself haunted by his time in the Upside Down, as evidenced by that whole slug upchuck in the season finale.
“He seems to be seeing images from the Upside Down—the question is whether they’re real or not,” co-creator Matt Duffer told the publication. “So it seems like he’s having some sort of post-traumatic stress disorder.”
Also experiencing a PTSD of sorts are siblings Nancy (Natalia Dyer) and Mike Wheeler (Finn Wolfhard), still reeling from the loss of both Barb (Shannon Purser) and Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown). “She and Mike are both the most screwed-up because they’re the ones who both lost someone,” co-creator Ross Duffer admitted. “They’re both grappling with that, and we see the effects.”
Remember that shady moment with Hopper (David Barbour) at the end of season one where he seemed to be entering into some sort of relationship with the shifty people pulling the strings at the lab? Turns out it was for a good reason. Namely, to keep the events of season one under wraps in order to protect Joyce (Winona Ryder) and the boys. “It kind of falls on Hopper to be the voice of authority to say, ‘This did happen and this didn’t happen,'” Harbour told the magazine. “He’s struggling with the compromise that takes him to, having to lie and cover things up.”
As for those recently-announced new faces making their way to Hawkins this season, details about their roles are finally available. Sean Astin will play Bob, Joyce’s old high school classmate and new boyfriend, while Paul Reiser will play the seemingly friendly new head of the lab, Dr. Owens. Chances he’s not what he seems? High.
Also new to Hawkins are brother and sister duo Billy (Dacre Montgomery) and Max (Sadie Sink). Max becomes a friend of the boys, earning the romantic attention of both Lucas and Dustin (played by Caleb McLaughlin and Gaten Matarazzo), while Billy decidedly doesn’t. “Stephen King always has really great human villains,” Matt Duffer teased. “The evil in the real world is often as bad or worse than the supernatural evil, so we wanted to introduce a character like that.”
Now for the news you all came for: The update on Eleven. As if there was ever any doubt, the enigmatically gifted girl will be back despite apparently perishing after her battle with the Demogorgon. “I want people to know that she’s back and she’s a major part of the season and not know how or why,” Matt Duffer offered. “We do get into her story and backstory. We learn about where she came from and how she came into the world and the program that resulted in her.”
Is it Halloween yet?
Stranger Things season two drops on October 31 on Netflix.
