Spare a thought for Will Byers of Hawkins, Indiana.
Despite spending much of Stranger Things season 1 trapped in a nightmarish reality known as the Upside Down, it looks like the show’s sophomore instalment will shove Noah Schnapp’s pint-sized protagonist out of the frying pan and into the freezer come October 27th.
Yes, despite getting rid of the so-called Demogorgon and restoring peace and balance to Hawkins – at the expense of Millie Bobby Brown’s Eleven…for now – Stranger Things season 2 will unleash a whole new wave of nasties, including a tendrilled sky-monster (Shadow Monster), upon the hapless folks of Indiana. That “singular threat” is spreading, it seems, so expect the show’s second season to boast a bigger sense of scale and scope than its precursor.
Not only will it stretch for nine episodes in total, but there’s also the new cast members to take into account, including Sean Astin’s friendly RadioShack employee, Bob. A potential love interest to Joyce Byers (Winona Ryder) – look away now, Hopper – the pair can be seen in today’s brand new image, which finds its way to us via Empire and can be seen in the gallery below along with a few previously released ones.
And though many feared the addition of Astin was a little on the nose – he did star in The Goonies, one of many key inspirations for Stranger Things – series showrunners Matt and Ross Duffer told Empire that Sean Astin simply “fits in nicely to the cast.”
There is definitely a doff of the cap to that era, but it has to work on its own terms. Bob’s authentic and optimistic and responsible.
You needn’t worry about being yanked out of Hawkins (or the Upside Down!) by the appearance of a bond fide Goonie, then. Other newcomers include Sadie Sink, Dacre Montgomery Paul Reiser, Chelsea Talmadge and Brett Gelman as Murray Bauman.
Darkness falls upon the land; the midnight hour is close at hand. Look for the second season of Stranger Things to get underway on Friday, October 27th.
