Eerie Stranger Things teaser hints at return of Dr Brenner

Laura Harding, PA Deputy Entertainment Editor

A new teaser for the upcoming fourth series of Stranger Things has hinted at the return of Matthew Modine’s Dr Martin Brenner.

The short video appears to be set at the Hawkins National Laboratory, which was run by Brenner and was where he raised, trained and performed experiments on children with psychokinetic abilities, including Millie Bobby Brown’s Eleven.

The teaser, set to the sound of a ticking clock, shows children crawling on the floor over rainbows, playing games.

A figure, who appears to be Dr Brenner, is then seen from behind walking down a corridor before walking through swing doors.

He can be heard saying: “Good morning children, how are you today?”

The children respond calling him “Papa”, the name for him also used by Eleven.

The camera then swings back to a door numbered 11 and he can be heard saying: “Eleven, are you listening?” before a shot of Brown’s character opening her eyes flashes on screen.

Dr Brenner originally appeared to be killed by the Demogorgon in the first series but it was later hinted that he is still alive.

The first trailer for the fourth series, which was released last year before production was delayed by the pandemic, also teased the return of David Harbour’s Hopper, who was also thought to be dead.

The third series of the hit Netflix show ended with an explosion, which was aimed at destroying the Soviet lab to the Upside Down under the new Starcourt Mall, while Winona Ryder’s Joyce Byers was seen taking her sons and Eleven out of Hawkins to start a new life.