Finn Wolfhard has described his response to the ending of Mike Wheeler’s storyline in Stranger Things as “confused and sad,” ahead of the fifth and final season of the Netflix series.
Wolfhard, who has played the role since the show’s debut in 2016, discussed the experience in a recent interview. “I was so happy with his ending, and I don’t know, I was satisfied, but I was also very confused and sad, but also very happy,” he said. He added that filming the final scenes “was definitely a lot,” comparing the experience to being in a dream. “None of it felt real. I don’t know, it felt perfect.”
Now 22, Wolfhard began the series as a young teenager, rising to prominence along with co-stars Millie Bobby Brown, Caleb McLaughlin, Gaten Matarazzo, and Noah Schnapp. The show’s first season followed a group of kids in 1980s Indiana investigating the disappearance of a friend and uncovering a secret government experiment. The cast expanded over the years to include Sadie Sink, Joe Keery, Natalia Dyer, Charlie Heaton, Winona Ryder, and David Harbour.
Wolfhard said the emotional impact of wrapping the series didn’t hit him immediately. “It didn’t really start to go into focus until the next day. It was like an emotional hangover,” he said. He also noted that the entire cast stayed for the final day of production. “We were all there together. It was really great to be around each other.”
Speaking last year, Wolfhard opened up about how early fame affected him during his teenage years. He mentioned experiencing panic attacks and anxiety while working. “Everyone was like, ‘Look at him, he’s fine. He’s having the best time,’” he said in a 2023 interview. “But in reality… things were happening in my brain, and anxieties were forming, and [there were] things that I didn’t realise that I had to bury because of how I had to feel at work.”
The show’s final season has been in production for over a year. Ross Duffer, who co-created the series with his brother Matt, said they filmed more than 650 hours of footage. “It’s like eight blockbuster movies,” he said during a Netflix press event. Matt Duffer described the final stretch of production as emotional and said the story had strong personal meaning for those involved.
Netflix has not released a premiere date for the new season, which is expected later this year.
