By Willow Green | Posted 3 Oct 2017

It's October – which means this month we're headed back into the Upside Down, for another dose of Stranger Things. Season 2 of the hit Netflix sci-fi show arrives on 27 October – and in the new issue of Empire, on sale Thursday, we have eight pages of coverage direct from Hawkins, Indiana. Among our exclusives: the below never-before-seen image of Joyce Byers (Winona Ryder), visiting her son Will (Noah Schnapp) in hospital. They're joined by new character Bob Newby, played by bona fide Goonie Sean Astin. Take a look – and click to embiggen.

“Matt and Ross said they were really hesitant to hire me because of my ’80s cache,” reveals Sean Astin in the new Empire, who takes the role of kindly RadioShack employee Bob (“A love interest for Winona,” he confirms). “There is definitely a doff of the cap to that era, but it has to work on its own terms. Bob’s authentic and optimistic and responsible.”

According to series co-creator Matt Duffer, they definitely did not want Astin’s casting to be “kitschy or self-aware”, or something that would “take you out of the world”. It was simply that, “For whatever reason, he fits in nicely to the cast.”

There's plenty more on Stranger Things - including the fate of Eleven, the Demagorgon and – yes! – the dearly departed Barb in the new issue of Empire, on sale this Thursday. Want to get yo ur copy days before anyone else? Subscribe to Empire here.