Stranger Things Season 4 Trailer Gives a First Close Look at a New Villain

Netflix has just unveiled our first real, close look at Stranger Things Season 4 in the form of a brand new trailer, including a glimpse of the season's new villain.

It’s time. See you on the other side.

Stranger Things 4 Vol. 1 premieres May 27 pic.twitter.com/vMbYkZft0M

— Netflix (@netflix) April 12, 2022

Warning, spoilers for the end of Stranger Things season 3 follow:

There's a lot to unpack in this trailer, but what immediately jumps out is the seeming human/monster hybrid creature that appears to be the season's main villain. The entire trailer is bookended with his narration. We also see Max writing a letter to her brother Billy, who sacrificed himself to save several other characters at the end of last season and is, presumably, dead.

We get additional glimpses of Eleven's past, though she still doesn't have her powers back at least at the start of the season, and all the kids trying to adapt to a normal high school experience. And there's a view of Creel House in the Upside Down, and plenty of monster fighting - such as Hopper against a Demogorgon and Steve shirtlessly fending off attackers, too.

Stranger Things Season 4 trailer screenshots

We have an in-depth breakdown of the trailer with the Duffer Brothers coming later today that will answer plenty more questions about what all is going on here and what we can expect. And we don't have too much longer to wait for the full fourth season of Stranger Things, which airs in part on May 27 and the rest on July 1. We'll be waiting with high hopes for season 4 after we called season 3 the show's "best outing so far" in our review.

Rebekah Valentine is a news reporter for IGN. You can find her on Twitter @duckvalentine.