Stranger Things' fourth season premiere adds warning label following Uvalde shooting
FBI, Physical, The Orville: New Horizons and Lifetime's Bad Seed Returns also change plans after tragedy
In the wake of the recent school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, Netflix has added a warning to the premiere episode of Stranger Things’ fourth season. The title card appears before the recap of the third season and references a particular moment from the opening minutes of the season.
The warning reads, “We filmed this season of Stranger Things a year ago. But given the recent tragic shooting at a school in Texas, viewers may find the opening scene of episode 1 distressing. We are deeply saddened by this unspeakable violence, and our hearts go out to every family mourning a loved one.”
The scene in question was released on YouTube last week ahead of the season premiere. The clip flashes back to Eleven’s (Millie Bobby Brown) days in Hawkins National Laboratories. Offscreen, Eleven unleashes her powers on the other residents of the lab; Dr. Brenner (Matthew Modine) witnesses the aftermath, which includes a gruesome depiction of several murdered children, covered in blood.
Netflix has actually removed the video of the first eight minutes of the fourth season from YouTube–where the clip was previously embedded, it is now marked “private.” The streaming service hasn’t commented on the subject.
Per Variety, the episode description has also been edited with the note, “Warning: Contains graphic violence involving children,” and “disturbing images” has been added to the show rating advisories.
The entertainment industry is usually quick to respond, in various ways, when the U.S. experiences yet another violent tragedy. There’s precedent for premieres being canceled, episodes being pushed back, and storylines being changed because of real-life events.
Beyond Stranger Things, the shooting in Uvalde prompted CBS to pull the season finale of FBI, while red carpet premieres for Physical and The Orville: New Horizons were scaled back.
Lifetime also delayed the release of the new movie The Bad Seed Returns. Star Mckenna Grace wrote on social media that she didn’t “feel comfortable promoting the film this week.” The 15-year-old added, “I was in first grade when Sandy Hook happened… and it feels like not much has changed since then.”