Stranger Things boss on how the show will handle its aging cast members

Stranger Things executive producer Shawn Levy is opening up about what the show plans to do regarding its aging cast members in the show’s fifth and final season. It’s no secret that actors like Millie Bobby Brown are getting older, but their characters are still teenagers. How will the show handle that? Will there be a time jump? Will the show use technology to de-age them?

Levy is not worried about it in the slightest, as he told Variety. “We’ve already watched the cast of our show grow up in the public eye, and between 12 and 22, every human being changes profoundly,” he said. What’s more, with filming for season 5 delayed thanks to the Hollywood actors strike, even more time is going by. “This passage of time is definitely not helping.”

"That being said, our hair and makeup and wardrobe department are pretty exceptional, using costumes and wigs and makeup. The ’80s are also our friends in returning these young adult actors to their iconic Hawkins characters. So we’re going to use all the tools available to us. And I know our cast is as eager to get back to work as the rest of us."

How will the Stranger Things crew make sure the stars still look like teenagers?

These days, VFX and makeup artists have absolutely changed the game when it comes to de-aging characters. There is nothing these guys can’t do, and this honestly doesn’t feel like as big a problem as it once might have. Even in Stranger Things season 4, Millie Bobby Brown played a younger Eleven in flashbacks and no one seemed to have much of a problem with it.

Of course, the task still isn’t easy. However, there should not be as many issues as there were for, say, the Marvel team when they de-aged the 50-year-old Robert Downey Jr. to make him look like a young man in Captain America: Civil War.

I look forward to this strike ending so these guys can get back to work and give us one hell of a final season of Stranger Things. It is going to be a bittersweet ending, but I am excited to see how it all comes together.

Get cheaper tickets for the Stranger Things play through the TodayTix app

While we don’t know when the fifth season of Stranger Things will premiere, we know that a new Stranger Things play — The First Shadow — will start having performances starting November 17 at the Phoenix Theater in London. The official opening is December 14. Take a look at some behind-the-scenes rehearsal shots below:

If you’re in the area and have the TodayTix app, Collider reports that you can enter a lottery to get the chance to buy cheap tickets for as little as £19.59 (around $24).

Stay tuned for more Stranger Things updates in the coming days, weeks, and months!

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h/t Entertainment Weekly