Prepare yourselves, Stranger Things fans—there's a new big bad on the block.
When season four of the Netflix hit returns on May 27, the town of Hawkins, Indiana, will be introduced to a dastardly creature that's darker than anything it's ever seen before.
It's time to meet Vecna, who is named after a Dungeons & Dragons character.
Victor Creel, who will be played by Nightmare on Elm Street legend Robert Englund, once lived in Creel House. After a serious of mysterious occurrences in the 1950s, Victor killed his entire family inside the spooky home.
"What occurs in that house is pivotal to understanding what has been happening in Hawkins all of these years," Stranger Things co-creator Ross Duffer told Entertainment Weekly.
The looming presence of Vecna is made even more frightening due to the fact that Eleven, played by Millie Bobby Brown, is powerless to help.
"Part of the drive and tension of this season is that we have this big new evil emerge in Hawkins, and for the first time ever, Eleven is not there," Duffer said. "Not only is she separated by distance, but at the end of season three, she's lost her powers. So even when she learns about what has happened in Hawkins, she is unable to help them in the same way she has before."
As if that weren't scary enough, Vecna comes with his own army of deadly bats. Sure!
"We always like to introduce a new (Demogorgon) creature, as you will, and so we were excited about introducing demo-bats," Duffer told EW. "Maybe one of them alone is not very dangerous, but when there's hundreds and hundreds of them coming to you at the same time, they're very, very deadly."
Prepare to see plenty of Vecna and his herd of killer bats, because season four of Stranger Things will be bigger and longer than any prior season.
"I don't think we have an episode clocking in under an hour. Even in season one there were episodes that were like 35 minutes. You kind of forget that," co-creator Matt Duffer told Deadline. "This season, they're very long. I think it's almost double the length of any season. So that's one reason it's taken so long. It does have this sort of epic quality to it. It's a different feel, for sure."
The fourth season of Stranger Things is being split into two parts. Volume 1 premieres on Netflix May 2, with volume 2 following shortly behind on July 1.
For more on what to expect from the most audacious season of Stranger Things yet, keep reading:
Stranger Things was renewed for season four in September 2019. And, thanks to a captivating teaser on Twitter, it was clear that the new season would venture outside the Indiana town. The caption read: "we're not in hawkins anymore."
All the way back in October 2019, the Stranger Things writers' Twitter account introduced Video Store Fridays, a list of movies which, according to the post, "relate in some way or another to season four."
The first films listed? The Peanut Butter Solution, The Fisher King, Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey, You've Got Mail and Ordinary People.
The writers kept this up for about six months, listing everything from Hellraiser 2 to Billy Madison and more.
In November 2019, it was teased that the first episode of season four is titled, "Chapter One: the Hellfire Club." What exactly is the Hellfire club? We have some theories, but we guess we'll have to wait and see.
For those who may need a refresher, it was unclear at the end of Stranger Things season three whether David Harbour's character Jim Hopper was still alive. By February 2020, Netflix released a teaser that showed a bald Hopper imprisoned in Russia.
On what fans can expect from season four, David Harbour told Deadline that "it's very epic and very big in a Stranger Things way." The leading man teased monsters, horror, scares and "great Indiana Jones-type action."
Additionally, fans can expect more of Hopper's backstory.
Just when we thought the Stranger Things cast couldn't get more impressive, Netflix announced eight additional cast members in November 2020, including Eduardo Franco, Jamie Campbell Bower, Sherman Augustus, Mason Dye, Joseph Quinn, Tom Wlaschiha, Nikola Djuricko and Freddy Krueger himself, Robert Englund.
In May 2021, a new teaser indicated that the origin story of Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) will be explored more. At the start of the clip, a number of youngsters with closely cropped hair are seen playing with educational toys. Later, Dr. Martin Brenner, a.k.a. "Papa" (Matthew Modine), appears to be seen from the back as he walks in and says in a voiceover, "Good morning, children."
As Brenner continues to interact with the children, heavy breathing is heard as a camera pans to a door with an 11 on it. The clip comes to an end with the ominous doctor asking, "Eleven, are you listening?"
Four new faces joined the Stranger Things cast in June 2021, including Amybeth McNulty as Vickie, a cool, fast-talking band nerd; Myles Truitt as Patrick, a basketball star at Hawkins; Grace Van Dien as another popular student, named Chrissy; and Regina Ting Chen as Ms. Kelly, a popular guidance counselor who cares deeply for her students.
In August 2021, Netflix teased what's to come for the new season, including its return year. "See y'all in the upside down," Netflix noted in an Instagram caption. "Stranger Things returns in 2022."
It was later announced that the season would be broken up into two volumes, with the first premiering on May 27.
In a teaser from Sept. 2021, a new spooky locale was introduced: Creel House. The footage indicated that the seemingly haunted home has a dark connection to the Upside Down, and that Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo), Steve (Joe Keery), Lucas (Caleb McLaughlin) and more are on the case.
On Stranger Things Day in 2021, Netflix revealed that Stranger Things season four will follow Eleven and the Byers family in their new town in California. Before fans of Eleven and Mike panic, it seems the couple will reunite over spring break. In typical Stranger Things fashion, the trip promises plenty of chaos.
Fans got a closer look at the haunted Creel House in one of the new posters.
Judging by this poster, maybe the west coast isn't the best coast after all.
Take a closer look at the lab where Eleven was created.
Season four takes viewers to Russia, meaning viewers may get answers about the origins of the Upside Down and other burning questions. This also might be where Hopper has been held after he sacrificed himself.
The Duffer Brothers confirmed season five will be Stranger Things' last in the above letter. "Seven years ago, we planned out the complete story arc for Stranger Things," they wrote in part. "At the time, we predicted the story would last four to five seasons. It proved too large to tell in four, but—as you'll soon see for yourselves—we are now hurtling toward our finale."
That being said, a billboard promoting season four also teased that "every ending has a beginning," so maybe there's a spinoff in the works.
Vecna, named after a Dungeons & Dragons character, is the ominous villain in season four. In the season's trailer, Vecna says "you've broken everything, your suffering is almost at an end."
The monster is made even more frightening due to the fact that Eleven is powerless to help.
"Part of the drive and tension of this season is that we have this big new evil emerge in Hawkins, and for the first time ever, Eleven is not there," co-creator Ross Duffer told Entertainment Weekly. "Not only is she separated by distance, but at the end of season three, she's lost her powers. So even when she learns about what has happened in Hawkins, she is unable to help them in the same way she has before."
Vecna also comes with his own army of deadly bats. Yes, deadly bats.
You've been warned.