With the upcoming Stranger Things season 4 serving as the penultimate run for the sci-fi horror series, a lot of fans have been speculating about where every character is going to end up as the story builds towards its conclusive arc. And while it remains to be seen how the narrative will go about continuing the stories of Eleven, Mike, Dustin, Will, and Lucas, the Duffer brothers say that the next chapter is all about one of the newer additions to the cast, Sadie Sink’s Max Mayfield.
Recently appearing in an IGN video to break down season 4’s trailer, the two creators revealed that there’ll be a huge focus on Max as she deals with her grief.
“So much of the season is about Max. We open the season with her struggling with [her grief] and her trying to navigate that, and Max, on the other hand, is also someone who doesn’t easily open up to people. So a lot of what she’s dealing with, she’s struggling with internally. She’s shut a lot of people out, which makes it even that much more difficult.”
Max’s step-sibling, Billy, became an antagonistic figure in season 3 when the Mind Flayer possessed his body and sent him after Eleven and the rest of the gang. The character, known for his bullying tendencies, ultimately redeemed himself in the season finale by sacrificing his life to protect the children.
Maxine and Eleven will both be grieving the loss of their family then, though, in the case of the latter, David Harbour’s Hopper is only presumed dead, whereas, for Billy, there probably won’t be a resurrection.
The first part of Stranger Things season 4, consisting of four episodes, premieres on Netflix on May 27.
