Slowly but surely,Stranger Things 4is on the way, folks. The hit sci-fi coming-of-age series premiered its sun-soaked, mall-centric third season this past summer to what Netflix claims arethe show’s biggest viewing numbers yet, so it came as no surprise when we learned thatStranger Thingshad been renewed for a fourth season in September. Now we have an idea of when we might be able to expectStranger Things 4to debut.
The folks over atTV Linehave theStranger Things4filming date details, reporting that production is slated to begin in January 2020 and will likely continue through August. That seven-month schedule is about on par with previous seasons, asStranger Things 2filming was underway from November 2016 through June 2017, andStranger Things 3filming took place from April 2018 through November 2018. These filming dates forStranger Things 4also give us an idea of when to expect the next season to debut on Netflix, and unfortunately it’s going to be a bit of a wait.
Stranger Things 2wrapped in June 2017 and premiered on Netflix in October 2017, andStranger Things 3wrapped in November 2018 and didn’t premiere until July 2019. Now, the premiere date forStranger Things 3was likely held until July to make sure the summer-themed season debuted during the appropriate season, but even still Season 2 needed four months between wrap and premiere date.
So ifStranger Things 4does indeed wrap filming in August 2020, based on how previous production schedules moved forward, the earliestStranger Things 4release date would be December 2020. Now, that could actually be fitting—the show’s first season took place over winter/Christmas so perhaps this next season will bring things full circle. Or it’s also possible thatStranger Things 4won’t premiere until Spring 2021, since that is so far the only “season” during which aStranger Thingshasn’t been set.
But while theStranger Things 4premiere date is a matter of speculation at the moment, we do have some firm details on how many episodes to expect. TV Line also reports that the fourth season of the show will likely consist of eight episodes. That’s in line with the number of episodes for the show’s first and third seasons, but down one fromStranger Things 2—an anomaly in which one episode was dedicated to life outside Hawkins.
Stranger Things 4plot details are under wraps, but creators/showrunnersThe Duffer Brotherspreviously teased thatwe may be traveling to Russia, and the announcement teaser for the show’s renewal teased, “We’re not in Hawkins anymore.” The Duffers have previously stated that the showwould likely come to an end after four or five seasons, and while Netflix has not yet announced thatStranger Things 4will be the show’s last go-around, it definitely feels like we’re in the endgame of sorts.
For more on what to expect fromStranger Things 4, check outour rundown of the biggest theoriesregarding what might happen.
