Attention, 'Stranger Things' Fans, There's Going To Be A Whole Lot More Of Erica In Season 3

Move over, Mike and company, because there's a new group of mystery solving-friends in Hawkins, and they're going to be led by none other than Lucas' scene-stealing sister, Erica. Deadline reports that Stranger Things Season 3 will have more Priah Ferguson now that the 11-year-old has been upped to recurring guest star status. In Season 2, the young actor appeared in a couple of episodes as the witty, syrup-obsessed sister of Lucas, and she quickly proved to be a fan favorite. Now, she's back for Season 3 and getting a proper storyline.

According to Deadline, Erica will return "with an army of friends." And given Erica's appreciation of Barbies and irritating her brother's friends, there's an excellent chance that her army will consist mostly of other little girls. And how awesome would that be? So far, Stranger Things has had exactly one true female friendship and that was Nancy and Barb's. Sadly, the world barely got a chance to get to know Barb before she was snatched by the Demogorgon.

That makes the thought of Lucas' little sister and her pals going on their own adventure so much sweeter. In addition to announcing Ferguson's increased role in Season 3, Netflix also revealed a hint at what's ahead for Erica and her friends:

"No longer content with sitting on the sidelines, Erica finds herself on a wild mission to save Hawkins from a dangerous and unexpected new threat."

Erica saving Hawkins on her own terms? Um, can it be Season 3 now, please? Because that sounds like something the world needs to see.

Believe it or not, Season 2 wasn't originally planned to include as much of Erica as it did. In a Nov. interview with Yahoo, Matt Duffer, one of the masterminds behind the show, said,

"I love Erica. [Ferguson] was just a local hire we made in Atlanta. Erica wasn't even supposed to be in [Season 2] as much as she was. We fell in love with this girl."

Duffer went on to say that the young actor was "very GIF-able." He's right, of course. Before Season 2 had ended, fans were already creating GIFs featuring Erica's one-liners. It quickly became clear that the show had another breakout character on their hands, and it's nice to know that will translate into seeing a whole lot more of Lucas' sister in the future.

While it's too soon for firm plot information to become available, it certainly sounds like Erica and her pals could be going on a side quest all of their own in Season 3. In fact, if there's a theme emerging in all of the tidbits that have been shared about the upcoming season so far, it's that the residents of Hawkins beyond the core cast are waking up to the fact that their town is a weird place to live.

In addition to more Erica, Season 3 will also be introducing Robin, played by Maya Thurman Hawke. Robin is described as an "alternative girl" who discovers a dark secret. And she's not the only one. Although they've yet to be cast, Slash Film reports that Netflix is in the process of looking for actors to play the town's mayor, an elderly woman who hangs out with the kids, and a "morally compromised" reporter. Beneath their relatively bare bones descriptions are characters that could signal the rest of Hawkins awakening to the fact that there's more going on in their sleepy town than they're being told.

Hey, if they want answers, then they should look no further than Erica, because if anyone is going to tell the world exactly what's up with Hawkins, it'll be her — and you can bet that she'll do it with style.