'Stranger Things' season 4 release date: Delay results in 'better than ever' screenplay

Filming for "Stranger Things" stopped in mid-March when the COVID-19 pandemic hit. It only resumed late in September and this means the release for season 4 is inevitably delayed. The show's executive producer, Shawn Levy, is looking at the delay positively since it helped the creators pen a great script.

Levy hinted at what could be the best season yet when the show returns to Netflix at a still-undetermined date. He acknowledged that the pandemic took its toll not just on "Stranger Things" but on other Hollywood movies and TV show productions.

"I'll just say the pandemic definitely massively delayed shooting and therefore the launch of our current season 4," he said in an interview with Collider.

"But it impacted very positively by allowing the Duffer brothers, for the first time ever, to write the entire season before we shoot it and to have time to rewrite in a way that they rarely had before so the quality of these screenplays are exceptional, maybe better than ever," he added.

The showrunners, The Duffer Brothers, were able to write screenplays for not just the expected eight but nine episodes. They shared a photo of the completed scripts for "Stranger Things" season 4 on Twitter in June, while the cast and crew were back at their respective hometowns observing lockdown measures.

Levy's statements give fans the assurance that season 4 will be better than the previous seasons. which were already well-regarded. He echoed what cast members Natalia Dyer and Joe Keery said about the installment being bigger.

Dyer, who reprises her role as Nancy Wheeler, considered the delay a blessing in disguise for The Duffer Brothers as it allowed them to write another episode. She also revealed that the screenplay made her go "Oh my God," and "wow!" The "Yes, God, Yes" star teased that the "scripts are great" and that season 4 is "going to be really big."

Meanwhile, Keery, who returns as Steve Harrington, said the pandemic gave the creators "more time to realise what their vision is" for the show. He assured that "Stranger Things" season 4 is worth the wait.