Gaten Matarazzo Shares His Favorite Cast Members to Text from Stranger Things

Gaten Matarazzo at the ‘Stranger Things 5’ premiere in the U.K. in November.
Credit :

Samir Hussein/WireImage

NEED TO KNOW

• Stranger Things’ Gaten Matarazzo shares insights about his ongoing connections with cast members.
• Matarazzo highlights their penchant for sending humorous voice memos and memes.
• Volume 1 of Stranger Things‘ final season is currently streaming on Netflix.

Gaten Matarazzo has opened up about his real-life relationships with his Stranger Things costars.

During the season 5 premiere in Los Angeles on November 6, the 23-year-old actor discussed his ongoing interactions with fellow cast members.

“I’m texting Finny (Finn Wolfhard) and Caleb (McLaughlin) a ton all the time,” Matarazzo said. “They update a lot. They like a good meme and a good laugh. A good voice memo, too. Those are always… We do a number of those on a frequent basis.”

Finn Wolfhard, Gaten Matarazzo, and Caleb McLaughlin at a ‘Stranger Things’ season 5 event in Berlin in November.

Gerald Matzka/Getty

Since the show’s inception in 2015, Matarazzo and his castmates have maintained close ties, even sharing living spaces, including time spent as roommates with Wolfhard.

In a recent episode of Jesse Tyler Ferguson’s Dinner’s on Me podcast, Matarazzo reflected on their time together while filming season 5.

“It was great,” he noted. “It was kind of like a college experience.”

He humorously pointed out the challenges of maintaining a tidy apartment: “I would look around like three months after we lived together and [be] like, ‘This place is disgusting. What are we doing?’”

When asked who was messier, Matarazzo shared, “We kind of match each other’s energy a little bit,” adding that their long-term friendship meant they didn’t set high standards for each other. “We were kind of like, ‘Ah, f— it. Whatever, man. We’ll get to it later,’” he said.

Gaten Matarazzo in ‘Stranger Things’ season 5.

COURTESY OF NETFLIX

Stranger Things’ final season premiered on November 26 on Netflix. Matarazzo discussed the table read for the finale during his conversation.

“That was December 2023,” he explained. “So even that was quite some time ago, and it was unreal. Everyone was so excited about it, looking forward to it. It was a good experience.”

He detailed that the readings were staggered, allowing the cast to tackle the first few episodes before gradually receiving later scripts.

Reflecting on his last day on set, Matarazzo likened it to a graduation, emphasizing that it felt like a significant celebration. He shared how Stranger Things has profoundly impacted his life.

“It’s the most incredible experience [I] could ever ask for,” he stated. “If it’s the only thing I do, I’m just proud to do it. I just am so thankful for being a part of it and for the opportunities it’s provided outside of it for myself and my family.”

He concluded, “I just want to spread that love of this experience out and about and let it be known how appreciative I am of it. It’s pretty incredible.”

Volume 1 of Stranger Things season 5 is currently available on Netflix, with Volume 2 set to premiere on December 25 and the finale scheduled for December 31.