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Cathal Gunning
Published 10 minutes ago
Cathal Gunning has been writing about movies, television, culture, and politics online and in print since 2017. He worked as a Senior Editor in Adbusters Media Foundation from 2018-2019 and wrote for WhatCulture in early 2020. He has been a Senior Features Writer for ScreenRant since 2020.
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Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents:
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The characters of Stranger Things have gotten a lot older than their onscreen counterparts, but what ages are they now, and how old are their characters in comparison? Stranger Things season 5, volume 1 has finally arrived, and the first four episodes of the show’s long-awaited final outing have been met with critical acclaim.
Despite the three-year wait between the end of Stranger Things season 4 and the beginning of this new season, both fans and reviewers appear to agree that the show’s latest outing is worth the wait. Since these episodes finally shed light on Vecna’s Stranger Things master plan, it is easy to see why fans are satisfied.
That said, the long wait between seasons isn’t without its issues. For one thing, the timeline of Stranger Things doesn’t align with the real-life aging of its actors, and that’s putting it mildly. Stranger Things season 1 begins in late 1983, and season 5 begins in late 1987. In contrast, nine years have passed since season 1 debuted.
Eleven
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In reality, actor Millie Bobby Brown is 21 years old as of November 2025. However, she was 20 when she shot the majority of Stranger Things season 5, as the show wrapped production in late 2024 and has been in post-production ever since.
Still, that’s a pretty big gap between Brown’s age and the age of her character, the telekinetic teen Eleven, who is only 16 in season 5. Brown was 12 when she was cast as a 12-year-old Eleven in season 1, but the pair’s age gap opened up as the wait between seasons grew.
Will Byers
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Alongside Brown, actor Noah Schnapp is the youngest of the ‘kids’ from Stranger Things at 21 years old in November 2025. Fittingly, his Stranger Things character Will Byers is also the same age as Eleven, at 16 years old during the events of season 5.
Mike Wheeler
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Mike’s actor Finn Wolfhard directed his first feature film the same year he shot season 5, but the actor is still only 22 years old in reality. His character is also 16 in season 5, but that isn’t the biggest age gap between one of the ‘kids’ and their character.
Dustin Henderson
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Actor Gaten Matarazzo is 23 years old in real life, but his character Dustin is still only 16 in season 5. A few months older than Wolfhard, even Matarazzo isn’t the oldest of the show’s former kids.
Lucas Sinclair
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The Book of Clarence star Caleb McLaughlin is 24 years old in reality, leaving an eight-year age gap between him and his character, Lucas Sinclair. Fortunately for McLaughlin, this isn’t all that notable since his in-series love interest has almost as big an age gap between her actor and character.
Max Mayfield
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Also known for the Fear Street trilogy, Sadie Sink is 23 years old in real life, but her character, Max Mayfield, is only 16 years old during the events of Stranger Things season 5. Trapped in a coma since season 4’s ending, Max’s Stranger Things fate has not yet been determined.
Nancy Wheeler
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Nancy’s actor, Natalia Dyer, recently turned 30 in real life, but her character Nancy Wheeler is only 20 in Stranger Things season 5. While she and co-stars Charlie Heaton and Joe Keery weren’t far from the ages of their characters when they were first cast, the age gap is now fairly hard to deny.
Jonathan Byers
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Like Nancy, Jonathan Byers is only 20 during the events of season 5. However, his actor, Charlie Heaton, is actually 31 years old. The real-life partner of Dyer, Heaton, isn’t quite the oldest of the show’s teens.
Steve Harrington
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In Stranger Things season 5, reformed jock Steve Harrington is supposed to be 21 years old. However, he is played by musician and actor Joe Keery, who, in reality, is 33 years old. Although he was 32 at the time of filming, this is still a fairly egregious age gap.
Robin Buckley
Getty Images for Netflix
In comparison, Keery’s co-star Maya Hawke doesn’t have much of an age gap to cover up. Her character Robin is 19 years old in season 5, but the actor is 27 years old in reality. Since she was 26 while filming the season, this seven-year age gap is barely notable among this cast.
Joyce Byers
Getty Images for Netflix
Joyce Byers was born between 1941 and 1942, making her around 41 during the events of season 1. This means she would be roughly 45 by the time season 5 takes place, which is almost a decade removed from actor Winona Ryder’s real-life age of 54. Interestingly enough, this is a bigger age gap than the other lead adult character from the series.
Jim Hopper
Getty Images for Netflix
Like Joyce, Hopper was born between 1941 and 1942. This puts him at 41 during the events of season 1 and 45 in season 5, but real-life actor David Harbour is actually only 50. Although still older than his character, he is a lot closer to Hopper’s age than many of his co-stars are to their Stranger Things characters.
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Stranger Things
10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Like Follow Followed TV-14 Drama Mystery Horror Science Fiction Release Date 2016 - 2025-00-00 Network Netflix Showrunner Matt Duffer, Ross Duffer Directors Matt Duffer, Ross Duffer, Andrew Stanton, Frank Darabont, Nimród Antal, Uta Briesewitz Writers Kate Trefry, Jessie Nickson-Lopez, Jessica Mecklenburg, Alison Tatlock
7 Images
Eleven looking into an opening of the Upside Down with pink light in Stranger Things season 1
Jim Hopper (David Harbour) grabbing Jonathan's (Charlie Heaton) shoulders in Stranger Things season 1©Netflix/Courtesy Everett Collection
Eleven with cables all over her head in Stranger Things season 4
Vecna looking towards Will in the trailer for Stranger Things season 5 (2025)
Max and Eleven in Stranger ThingsNetflix
Stranger Things season 2, episode 2 "Trick or Treat, Freak".MovieStillsDB
The Upside Down in Stranger Things season 5Courtesy of Netflix Close
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Millie Bobby Brown
Jane 'Eleven' Hopper
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Finn Wolfhard
Mike Wheeler
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Stranger Things
We want to hear from you! Share your opinions in the thread below and remember to keep it respectful.
Do you think the significant age gaps between the actors and their teenage characters in Stranger Things season 5 are distracting or take away from the show's realism?
Cathal
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10 minutes ago
Some viewers may find the age differences jarring, as the actors are now in their early 20s while portraying 16-year-olds. However, others might argue that the strong performances and storytelling outweigh any age-related distractions. The passage of time in the real world doesn't align with the show's timeline, but as long as the characters and their relationships remain compelling, the age gaps may not matter as much to some fans.
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