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Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven in Stranger Things 4

The Duffers Clapped Back At Millie For Wanting More Stranger Things Deaths

“This is Hawkins, it’s not Westeros.”

by Ani Bundel
Netflix

Before the premiere of Stranger Things 4, the Duffer Brothers warned audiences the new season would be darker and more horror-centric. The claim was that the kids are growing up, and their problems are getting bigger. Viewers seem to agree that Volume 1 of Stranger Things 4 kept that promise. But Volume 2 pulled some punches, not necessarily delivering on all the heartbreaking deaths fans were expecting. For at least one cast member, this was a mistake. In a recent interview, Millie Bobby Brown (playfully!) said Stranger Things needed to kill off more characters. The Duffer Brothers, however, disagree.

Warning: Spoilers for Stranger Things 4 follow. Going into the final two episodes of Stranger Things 4, there were many theories regarding who wouldn’t make it to Season 5. Some of those theories were correct: Dr. Brenner didn’t survive Episode 8, and Eddie was eaten alive by bats in the finale. In addition to those two, there were Hawkins residents who supposedly disappeared or died when the Hawkins was split by the “earthquake” (aka the Upside Down pit that formed). However, none of them were characters fans knew. Moreover, no one from the central core cast was even badly injured, save for Max. Max’s brief death was the impetus for the Upside Down’s opening, but the Duffers couldn’t bring themselves to make that stick — instead, she’s in a coma

Considering the flack the Duffers got over Barb and their regret over having to slaughter Chrissy, some fans think they’re a bit too tender-hearted to, as the saying goes, kill their darlings. Brown, for one, agrees with that assessment. In a recent video interview with The Wrap, Brown called the Duffers “sensitive Sallies,” saying their unwillingness to pare down has left the cast “too big” for her liking. “We couldn’t even take one group picture; there were like 50 of us,” Brown joked. I was like, ‘You need to start killing people off.’”

However, the Duffers will not be pressured by Brown’s need to make the cast a manageable size or up the stakes by slaughtering fan-favorites for shock value. During their appearance on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, in response to Brown’s comment, Matt Duffer insisted, “We aren’t Game of Thrones.”

Not that the Duffers and the other writers haven’t considered the possibility of a few well-placed cuts. “Believe us, we’ve explored all options in the writing room,” Matt Duffer continued. However, taking out one of the main leads doesn’t work for the show they’re trying to create. “This is Hawkins, it’s not Westeros.”

That will probably calm the audiences worried about the fates of someone in the Steve-Nancy-Jonathan love triangle or someone burying Vickie or Robin come Season 5. Whatever *does* happen, it sounds like Hawkins will be rescued. And hopefully, everyone, including Max, will make it out alive.