Netflix Issues Content Warning To ‘Stranger Things’ Season 4

The fourth and final season of Netflix has premiered on the streaming platform today, with a content warning appearing at the beginning of the first episode following the elementary school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, on Tuesday. Fans looking to dive into the latest series of the sci-fi show, starring Millie Bobby Brown, Winona Ryder, and David Harbour, will be met with a warning message from Netflix, who believe the opening scene of the show may leave some viewers feeling distressed.

The company had recently released the first eight minutes of the new season, which revealed a horrifying timeline of events unfolding in a flashback scene to Eleven’s past at Hawkins Laboratory. Other supernatural children, who possessed similar powers to Eleven, are shown murdered at the lab before she is found covered in blood by Dr. Martin Brenner, implying that she was responsible for the kids’ deaths.

According to Variety, the intense opening scene has prompted Netflix to issue viewers with a warning, which 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 premiere’s description has also been revised and now reads, “Warning: Contains graphic violence involving children’, with ‘disturbing images’ added to the show rating advisories.”