Spoilers ahead for Season 4 of Stranger Things on Netflix.
The long-awaited fourth season of Stranger Things has come to an end after nine episodes, two volumes, and one fan-favorite death. Tragically, Eddie Munson didn’t survive the season finale after he sacrificed himself in the Upside Down to continue distracting the demo-bats from chasing any of his friends. Actor Joseph Quinn was already a standout among the cast after Vol. 1, so his character’s death in Vol. 2 packed an especially emotional punch. Quinn has since revealed what he’s most proud of after his time on the Netflix hit.
There’s a lot for him to be proud of after everything he contributed as Eddie, not the least of which was the climactic scene of the character shredding a Metallica guitar solo in the Upside Down. It wasn’t Eddie playing “Master of Puppets” that Quinn is most proud of, however, even though he originally wasn’t sure that the scene would work. Speaking with CinemaBlend, he explained what stands out to him as he looks back:
I guess I'm proud of being a part of it, really. That's kind of the main feeling. And I enjoyed all of the ensemble scenes, really. Whilst it was great having that dynamic with Gaten – I loved the scenes, I loved doing that with him – but I also loved the scenes where there was a big gang of us, because that meant that we all got to kind of be dumb, in between takes and kind of make each other laugh… You know, it's the friendships that you make [that] actually inform your life after the job, not just the doing of the job, and I made some very good friends on this one.
Eddie had a strong bond with Dustin, to the point that Dustin was the only one with him when he died in a scene that was “weird” for the actors to film. Still, Joseph Quinn shared that it wasn’t just his bond with Gaten Matarazzo that stands out to him, but the entire group of the ensemble in the Hawkins plot of Season 4.
The Hawkins story did by far have the most main characters, with the older group of teens comprised of Quinn’s Eddie, Natalia Dyer’s Nancy, Joe Keery’s Steve, and Maya Hawke’s Robin. The younger group of teens was in the mix as well, including Matarazzo as Dustin, Caleb McLaughlin as Lucas, and Sadie Sink as the unlucky Max, plus Priah Ferguson as Erica. Quinn had lots of time to form bonds and – in the actor’s words – ”be dumb” to make each other laugh.
Considering that the laughs were relatively few and far between in Hawkins with the major threat to Max’s life and the urgent need to kill Vecna before he could create another gate from the Upside Down, it’s easy to understand why building friendships and having fun when the cameras weren’t rolling is a fond memory for Joseph Quinn.
Unfortunately, Quinn’s Eddie won’t be back among the living in the fifth and final season, based on what the Duffer brothers had to say. Fans can hold out hope about seeing the actor again, however. Sean Astin briefly appeared in Season 3 after Bob tragically died in Season 2, and Dacre Montgomery returned in Season 4 after his brutal death in the Season 3 finale. Between flashbacks and visions courtesy of Vecna, it’s not impossible that Joseph Quinn’s Eddie could appear in Season 5!
For now, however, fans can appreciate that the actor had such a good experience and took strong friendships away from his season of Stranger Things. You can revisit Joseph Quinn’s time as Eddie in Season 4 with a Netflix subscription now, and check out our rundown of what we know so far about Season 5 as another hiatus begins.
