Posted in: Netflix, Stranger Things, TV | Tagged: stranger things, stranger things 5

Stranger Things 5: Matarazzo on Dustin's Full-Circle Tribute to Eddie

Stranger Things 5 star Gaten Matarazzo on Dustin's journey in grief, resolving issues with Steve, graduation speech, finale, and more.

To say that Stranger Things 5 would be Gaten Matarazzo's most difficult as Dustin Henderson, would be an understatement, having forged a bond with fellow outcast, Eddie Munson (Joseph Quinn), losing him in the season four finale, and being treated like the town pariah and afterthought following his brave sacrifice in the group's season-ending battle with Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower). As Dustin bore the grief alone, he acted out, well as much as the Duffers fit in as much space as they could in the final season, pushing others away and getting into fights, including best friend Steve Harington (Joe Keery), who wasn't as aware of what Eddie meant to Dustin since he instilled a confidence in high school he'd never seen recruiting him into Hawkins High's Dungeons & Dragons group, the Hellfire Club, which was mistaken as a demonic cult given the chaos Vecna has been causing around town. Matarazzo spoke to Deadline about Dustin's journey through grief, the weight that has been lifted from his shoulders with the finale's release, sifting through Dustin's anger toward Steve before their reconciliation, the graduation speech, the closure, and the final D&D scene.

Stranger Things 5 Star Gaten Matarazzo on Dustin Mourning Eddie, Trauma, and More

As far as working out Dustin's anger with Steve's resentment of Eddie, "Oh, man, it's there was a lot of stress involved, especially as we were getting closer, and we started reading the stuff within Volume 2. I was like, 'Great. Okay, cool. So now the entire year is gonna be built around me being stressed about this fight and this blow up afterwards,'" Matarazzo told Deadline. "Even the stuff in [Episode] 7, where we finally kind of settle into it, there's a lot of nerves going in. There's a lot of stakes. I love this kid a lot. I love Dustin. I love playing him. I love watching him grow and growing alongside of him, and it breaks my heart to see what a place that he's in. Also, for it being the last [season], I was inevitably going to grieve that fun-loving side of him and being able to tap into it, because I had to jump into something new and find something different. But, knowing that it would be with Joe is this most soothing part of it, understanding that I would get to do so alongside somebody who — not only who I trust, but who I've seen take on challenges like this and do so with seeming ease."

Matarazzo credits his existing rapport with Keery in working through those intense scenes, "He is such a grounded, thoughtful actor, and you can look him in the eyes and fully settle in yourself. He's very giving. Oh man, it's hard to explain what acting alongside somebody like him is like, but I think that also comes with being just a good friend of his and him being a good friend of mine. That makes a process like that a hell of a lot easier to where we have the ability to show the ugly parts of ourselves to each other and not feel the awkward pressure of like, 'I barely know you, so now I have to go and hug you and cry in your arms.' I don't think I could do that with a stranger. Thankfully, it's somebody as capable as Joe, so it made a big difference for sure."

The LEGO Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy star remarked how difficult it was to balance the intense emotions while retaining his sense of character. "It was something that, at least, I was warned about, which is very nice. My biggest challenge there…it wasn't necessarily digging into grief. I feel like that was something that a lot of actors are expecting to tap into at some point. Part of acting is you're dealing with [and] showing the scariest parts of being human and doing so on a regular basis, because that's what people are interested in seeing," he explained.

"That's what people are drawn towards, because maybe it's hard to see that and feel that in a day-to-day in your own life. That's why I was drawn to acting in the first place, is to be able to do that on a regular basis and learn about it in a low-pressure situation where you're kind of given the ability to do it without judgment, which is very nice and really cool. The hardest part was doing so and still being Dustin. I didn't just want to be a different guy. I still wanted to feel like him, and I wanted to still show people that there was a part of him that was recognizable. Otherwise, I don't think people would really be engaged. Who's this? This is a new person. I really wanted to make sure that people still felt drawn to the kid that they grew up meeting and knowing."

As far as Dustin's unconventional graduation speech as valedictorian and paying Eddie one last tribute for sharing his rebellious graduation plans the previous season, which includes flipping off Hawkins High's principal and snatching his diploma from him, "Exactly, that's the way to properly [do it]. Dustin is convinced throughout the whole process that being miserable is the way to service a friend or to remember him, because if he's not living through his grief and he's not hurting, then he's not loving and he's not missing him properly," Matarrazo said.

"He believes that trying to move on and be happy and joke around and make friends and live his life, it feels like he would think of it as a disservice to him, whereas, of course, we know it's distinctly the opposite. Nobody who loves you would want you to live miserably for them. That would be the scariest thing in the world. That's something he learns and learns to be excited about. Now, he's entered a place in his life where he can tell stories about him and listen to his music and show pictures of him to people and talk about him with new friends and reminisce and do so smiling and laugh about it and not have to be on the verge of tears with it. That's a new part of grief that's actually quite beautiful, and it's weirdly fun and refreshing to enter, because it's inevitable…"

In the series' final D&D scene, we have Dungeon Master Mike (Finn Wolfhard) in the final session of the existing campaign alongside Dustin, Will (Noah Schnapp), Lucas (Caleb McLaughlin), and new player, Max (Sadie Sink). When it came to filming the session and Mike's subsequent speech on what happened to Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown), "Oh man, yeah, we anticipated that all day. It was really hard to know how we're going to deliver that, because you want to distance yourself from as much cheese in that moment as you can, I think," Matarazzo said.

"The audience can kind of leave it up to interpretation for them, whatever works for them as to Eleven's whereabouts, as to whether she's alive or not, whatever makes you feel better about the show is fully okay for you to do. That's something that I've already seen is kind of a 50/50 split amongst people who've watched it, which I think is perfect. That's exactly how it should be. There should be a debate about it. There should be discourse. There should be no 'Here's why this, here's why this.' It's a great way for people to consistently engage in the show. But…I'm not convinced that there is a consensus amongst the group as to whether or not they agree. I don't know if there is. I don't know if they all believe, right? I think I would rather leave Dustin's mindset on that more personal and up to people's interpretation, even though my mind is kind of made up as to what he feels. If they do believe, it's so special that they do, and if they don't, it's so kind of them to give that to their friends, right? That's a really special way to wrap it up," he added.

Sadly, those missing from the final season include Suzie (Gabriella Pizzolo), who is Dustin's friend in seasons three and four, they contact over CB radio, but Pizzolo did make an appearance at the final season's red-carpet premiere. For more on Dustin's graduation speech, surprising fans at the finale screenings, series legacy, and future, you can check out the interview.

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