The actor reflects in grief, growth and the emotional weight of filming the final season
In a new interview with NME, Gaten Matarazzo reflects on the emotional and personal weight of filming the final season of Stranger Things.
Having joined the series at just 14 years old, he has effectively grown up on the set, and saying goodbye to his character Dustin Henderson has come with a sense of grief, nostalgia and pride.
After nearly a decade in Hawkins, he explained that “it became a joke between all of us that we’ve been saying goodbye for longer than we’ve actually been doing the show”.
Matarazzo shares that this season demanded a deeper emotional performance than any before it. Part of that intensity came from drawing on his own personal grief, including the loss of a close family member, which he says helped shape his portrayal.
He explains that the earlier years of the show relied heavily on instinct and youthful energy, but by the time he reached season five, the role had matured, and so had his approach to acting.
The experience shifted from simply reacting to scenes to truly understanding and embodying Dustin’s internal world.
Although the final season promises to be the biggest and darkest yet, Matarazzo is equally focussed on the bittersweet reality of letting go.
He acknowledges that moving on from Stranger Things means closing a massive chapter of his life, one defined not only by fame but by long-standing friendships, professional growth and coming of age in front of millions.
He admits that while he’s excited for the future, stepping away from something so foundational is daunting.
For both fans and the actor himself, the end of Stranger Things represents more than a finale. It marks the conclusion of a defining era, handled with the emotional honesty and reflection that have made Matarazzo one of the show’s most beloved cast members.
Stranger Things season five vol.1 premiers on Netflix on 26th November, with the second volume arriving on Christmas Day, and the final episode dropping on New Year’s Eve.
