Warning: This article contains spoilers for 4: Volume 1
The creators of Stranger Things have admitted they regret killing off a character in the show’s new season.
In the first episode of the latest batch of seven, Chrissy Cunningham (Grace Van Dien) is introduced to the show and befriends another new face, drug dealer and Dungeons & Dragons enthusiast Eddie Munson (Joseph Quinn).
But sadly, their relationship is cut short by Chrissy’s horrifying death, which sees her possessed and brutally Ki**ed by a creature known as Vecna – all before Eddie’s very eyes.
In an interview with TVLine, creative duo the Duffer Brothers were asked about the fate of newcomer Chrissy, Hawkins High School’s best cheerleader.
‘We always have those moments [of “What have we done?”],’ Matt Duffer said. ‘We shot the quote-unquote drug-deal scene in the woods pretty late, actually, into shooting.’
‘We had already Ki**ed Chrissy when we shot [the drug-deal scene],’ Ross Duffer added.
Matt continued: ‘The scene came alive in a way that was just so beautiful, and so much of that was Joe and Grace.’
‘It was just one of those fortunate scenes where we were able to have two cameras rolling capturing them simultaneously,’ Matt added.
‘Joe was doing a lot of stuff kinda spontaneously, and we were getting these amazing reactions from Grace.’
Before Chrissy meets Eddie for the first time, she endures visions of a ticking grandfather clock that’s covered in spiders and being screamed at by her mother.
And those visions soon lead to Chrissy’s downfall. As she visits Eddie’s home, Vecna catches up with her in the visions and kills her while Eddie can only scream in terror.
Despite only appearing on camera briefly, Van Dien became a huge favourite with the show’s fans, and the Duffer Brothers definitely agree.
‘It’s pretty impressive what Grace was able to do with very, very few scenes – to get people to care like she did,’ Matt added.
So, while it might be the end for Chrissy, the Hawkins High cheerleader, it might just be the very beginning of Grace Van Dien’s creative partnership with the Duffer Brothers.
Speaking on Instagram about playing Chrissy, Grace said she was ‘just happy to be here’ and told fans to ‘say hello’ to her new character.
Stranger Things 4: Volume 2 is available from July 1 on Netflix.
