Gaten Matarazzo Reflects on Child Stardom and Offers Advice to New Harry Potter Cast

Stranger Things star Gaten Matarazzo has opened up about growing up in the spotlight, as he admitted he’d missing out on important experiences in his development.

The actor, 23, shot to global stardom at just 14 years old when he was cast as Dustin Henderson in the hugely popular Netflix show.

The sci-fi horror made Gaten and his co-stars Millie Bobby Brown, Finn Wolfhard, Caleb McLaughlin, Noah Schnapp and Sadie Sink household names, before they had even reached high school.

Now, almost a decade later and the cast is preparing to say goodbye to the series that made their names, as the fifth and final season drops this month. 

Speaking about how Stranger Things had impacted him in a new interview with Fault Magazine, Gaten got candid about finding huge success at such a young age.

He admitted that being a child star had its ups and downs, as he stressed he was truly grateful for the experience, but acknowledged that it had impeded his personal development into adulthood.

While he also offered some advice for others following in his footsteps, including the new young Harry Potter cast of the upcoming HBO series.

Asked about the pressures for child stars to always show how grateful and indebted they are, Gaten admitted it ‘can feel stupid to complain’, but that he was ‘probably still a bit of a kid’.

He said: ‘It is a very consistent thought of mine to always feel like I need to overcompensate and vocalise my gratitude because sometimes it can feel stupid to complain. 

‘I’m surrounded by love, gratitude, and a deep passion for what I do, and I truly recognise how fortunate that is.

‘Still, it’s fair to admit that I missed out on certain experiences and nuances that might have helped me grow into a more well-rounded adult. 

‘In some ways, I’m probably still a bit of a kid because I never had the chance to develop those parts of myself fully — even though what happened to me was ultimately a very good thing.’

He added: ‘And when it comes to new kids joining the industry, like the new Potter cast, my biggest advice would be to just focus on having as much fun as possible, that’s really what it’s all about.’

Gaten went on to say how playing Dustin for so long meant that getting into character was ‘instinctual’, and confessed that stepping away from the role would ‘likely be difficult’.

However, he said that playing the smart and quick-witted character had also helped him in real life, with Dustin’s experiences of grief after the death of Eddie Munson, helping Gaten cope with real-life losses, calling it ‘therapeutic’.

He said: ‘There was always a long gap between seasons, so I’d change and learn new things, which I could then bring to him. Likewise, I’d take lessons from him into my own life. 

‘There were even moments when our experiences strangely aligned – we both lost people unexpectedly around the same time. It was surreal but also therapeutic. 

‘Playing him helped me process my own grief, even if that’s not the healthiest outlet. It allowed me to explore emotions from another perspective.’

Fans of Stranger Things have been patiently waiting for the show’s final season for years, with the penultimate series airing all the way back in July 2022. 

Set in the fall of 1987, more than a year after the previous season’s events, the fifth and final season the beloved characters are now trapped under a military lockdown, struggling to contain the chaos Vecna unleashed at the end of season 4.

Describing where Dustin is at at the start of season five, Gaten said he is struggling to ‘keep all the pieces together’ while dealing with Hawkins’ military lockdown and the fallout from Vecna’s return. 

He told Tudum: ‘Dustin is in a bit of a funk. I think everybody probably is considering the state that Hawkins is in, and it’s getting a little bit harder for the gang to keep all the pieces together. 

‘We’re all dealing with the day-to-day issues of what it is to try to keep everybody safe and figure out where Vecna is, while having a lot of unpacked baggage from the events of the previous season.’

Meanwhile, Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) in hiding and training to take on Vecna, while the new trailer teases Will Byers (Noah Schnapp) coming face to face with the creature. 

The final season has been split up into Volume 1 and 2, with the first four episodes set to premiere on Netflix on November 26.

Episodes five, six, and seven will follow on Christmas Day, while the final ever episode will drop on New Year’s Eve. 

Rounding out the cast are Winona Ryder, David Harbour, Natalia Dyer, Charlie Heaton, Joe Keery, Maya Hawke, Priah Ferguson, Brett Gelman and Jamie Campbell Bower.

The official synopsis reads: ‘[Vecna] has vanished — his whereabouts and plans unknown. Complicating their mission, the government has placed the town under military quarantine and intensified its hunt for Eleven, forcing her back into hiding.

‘As the anniversary of Will’s disappearance approaches, so does a heavy, familiar dread. The final battle is looming — and with it, a darkness more powerful and more deadly than anything they’ve faced before. 

‘To end this nightmare, they’ll need everyone — the full party — standing together, one last time.’