Duffer Brothers Say Fans Overestimate How Much ‘Stranger Things’ Stars Have Aged

The Duffer Brothers, creators of Stranger Things, recently talked about how the show’s cast has changed since the first season in 2016.

Fans often joke about how much the young actors have aged over the years, but the Duffers say it’s not as noticeable as people think.

Ross Duffer admitted he isn’t even sure how much time has passed in the show’s timeline. “Honestly, I’d have to look it up. I can’t remember when that first season — was it ’83? Five years, maybe?” Matt Duffer added.

Matt also explained how filming can cover long periods without showing it on screen. He gave an example from Season 4, Episode 4, the “Dear Billy” episode. “Sadie [Sink] is in the basement, writing her letters, and then she walks out of the basement outside, and a year has passed for her, because we shot the two scenes at the beginning and the end of production. And you can’t tell. No one’s ever, ever noticed that. That’s a full year.”

The Duffers also mentioned that changes in the actors’ voices can be a challenge. Matt said, “We’re still dealing with that. We were recording with actor Jake [Connelly], who plays a new character this year, and his voice has already dropped quite a bit since we shot him. Luckily, there’s EQ technology. We actually were just listening today. It’s fine. We got worried for a second, but it’s OK.”

Fans have often teased the cast about aging, especially since many of the main characters started as children. The Duffers’ comments show that while the actors are growing up, the timeline of the show and careful filming make the changes less obvious than viewers might think.

At long last… we can begin. The trailer for the epic final season of STRANGER THINGS is here pic.twitter.com/w4WuzuCqRs

— sƃuᴉɥʇ ɹǝƃuɐɹʇs (@Stranger_Things) October 30, 2025

The season had its world premiere on November 6, in Los Angeles, and is set to be released in three parts: the first volume of four episodes will debut on November 26, followed by the second with three episodes on December 25, and the series finale on December 31.

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