All the tea the Duffer brothers have spilled on 'Stranger Things' season 4

We're at the Duffer brothers' mercy. 

Now that the first volume of Stranger Things season 4 has arrived on Netflix, we're all looking toward the show's creators for clues about season 4 part 2, which hits the streamer on Friday, July 1. The brains behind the sci-fi sensation have treated us to a few hints here and there, and naturally, we've scooped 'em all up. 

If you've left Hawkins with questions—lots of questions—allow Matt and Ross Duffer to clear up any confusion. 

*Warning: spoilers ahead!*

The Duffer Brothers on 'Stranger Things' season 4

1. Will there be any deaths?

Who dies in Stranger Things season 4? We've been making predictions about the final two episodes, and we have a feeling we'll be forced to say some tough good-byes...right?

"I don’t really want to say, but I would be concerned about the characters going into Volume 2, for sure," Ross Duffer told Variety. "I hope that that is sort of the sense because it is a darker season and the kids are no longer kids."

Likewise, Ross' twin echoed the same thoughts to Entertainment Weekly. 

"You're feeling a little bit unsettled and unsafe for everybody, and all I'll say is, that's great. You should. That's the intention," Matt said. "We wanted the whole season to feel like everybody is in jeopardy."

Overall? We don't know who is meeting their fate, but we know things are not looking terribly peachy keen. 

2. Is that Freddy Krueger?

Crossover alert?! Is that a Freddy Kreuger Stranger Things cameo we've spotted? Well...yes and no. 

Freddy Krueger actor Robert Englund does play the supporting role of Victor Creel in season four, not the infamous horror villain. 

Matt Duff revealed to IGN that the actor expressed interest in a role on the show: "The fact that he came to us in a season that’s so deeply inspired by the Nightmare series and by his performance especially in those movies, it felt like fate. It felt like, 'okay, this is meant to be.'"

3. Will Eleven get her powers back?

The million-dollar question: Does Eleven get her powers back in Stranger Things? Spoiler: she will, but it won't quite be what fans are expecting. 

"Well, it felt like such a great central conflict of like, she needs her powers back in order to save Hawkins in order to save her friends," Matt told EW. "But the only person who can do it is this man who she's grown to hate for good reasons. There's a lot of complicated emotions there."

We're definitely anxious to see how it will play out.

4. Have we seen Vecna before?

You've already met Vecna, Stranger Things' new monster, a.k.a. the scariest creature we've seen this side of the Upside Down.  

This season's supervillain takes inspiration from the original Dungeons and Dragons character, as well as famous faces in horror: Pinhead, Pennywise and Freddy Kreuger. Yes, there was a reason the show's creators wanted to be everyone's worst nightmare (to date). 

"This season, as with every new season, we wanted to do something very different,” the Duffer brothers revealed in another Variety interview. “Our kids aren’t kids anymore, so we wanted to put them in the middle of a horror film, one that was more psychological in tone."

He definitely fits the bill!

5. Did they purposely forgot Will's birthday?

In episode two of season four, detail-oriented fans noticed a rolling camera marks March 22 as the date, which is supposed to be Will's birthday...which seemingly goes unnoticed. Whoops!

"You know how George R.R. Martin has somebody—I mean, his story is more vast—and Stephen King has someone who just keeps track of this stuff? We need that. We don’t have that," Matt joked to Variety. 

Looks like even the creators of one of the greatest Netflix shows of all time had a few brain farts here and there. 

6. Will fans learn more about Will's sexuality?

Though it's up for interpretation right now, it seems there's more down the line in Will's love life, according to the Duffer brothers.

"It’s going to be much easier to talk about for everyone—the actors and us—once those final two episodes have played. But certainly, his journey and arc is far from finished," they told Variety. 

Matt said in Entertainment Weekly: "We have a lot of big character emotional reveals and payoffs in the final two episodes, so I don't want to say too much."

7. Did they plan on Dr. Brenner's return?

"We never showed his death on screen. And the reason is, we always knew that we wanted to bring Brenner back and wanted to work with [actor Matthew] Modine again," Ross told EW. 

"We brought him back briefly in season 2, but that was more to hint at him still being alive. And we were just waiting for the right story to bring him back."

8. Did they know season 4 was going to be so long?

The episodes in season 4 are far longer than any we've seen before from Stranger Things, but as the brothers told Collider, it just kind of happened. 

"We went to Netflix and said, 'Hey, are you okay if we do one more episode?', and luckily they were very supportive of that, but that's how we ended up with that extra episode. But it was not originally planned that way. It wasn't outlined that way. It was always going to be eight. And then it just ended up being too much story."

Who else is waiting impatiently for the final two episodes? Not just us, that's for sure!