The actresses of Stranger Things: who they are, and what they have shot elsewhere
Actors · The actresses · Careers
Four generations of actresses, born between 1956 and 2006, and two Emmy nominations for two very different roles. In this article: the three actresses of the first season, the arrivals of the second, the ice cream parlor duo in season 3, the latest arrivals, the ones people forget and who matter, a summary table, what the show changed for them and where to see them next. By the end, you will know who plays what, and where each one comes from.
A twelve-year-old girl with a shaved head, a cult actress of American cinema as a mother, a Texan teenager on a skateboard: the show's female cast was built as an assembly of generations. Here is who they are, where they come from, when they arrived, and what you may have seen them play elsewhere.
The essentials
- The youngest on arrival: twelve years old, for the lead role of the series
- The most experienced one: a career that began in the 1980s
- Four generations: from 1956 to 2006 for the birth dates
- Staggered arrivals: one per season, right up to the last one
- Two Emmy nominations: for two very different roles
- Origins: United States, Ireland, and one birth in Spain
Contents
The three actresses from the first season
Three actresses carry the first season, and they have nothing in common, which is exactly the point. An unknown child to play Eleven, an actress who had been working for thirty years for Joyce Byers, a young woman of twenty-one for Nancy Wheeler. The trio covers three stages of life in the same small town.
The first, born February 19, 2004 in Marbella, Spain, to British parents, shot the show from the age of twelve. She then headlined studio films from 2019 on, then launched her own series of detective films in 2020, which she also produces.
The second is a figure of American cinema since the mid-1980s, born October 29, 1971 in Minnesota. Before playing a mother who talks to string lights, she had already shot a 1988 fantasy comedy, a 1990 fairy tale and a 1994 literary adaptation that earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress.
The third, born January 13, 1995 in Nashville, plays the eldest child of the family with the basement. She has since been seen in a satire of the art world in 2019, in a well-received comedy the same year and in a fantasy film in 2021.
| Character | Birth | Arrival | Elsewhere |
|---|---|---|---|
| The show's lead role | February 19, 2004, Spain | season 1 | studio films since 2019, detective series since 2020 |
| The Byers mother | October 29, 1971, Minnesota | season 1 | 1988 fantasy comedy, 1990 fairy tale, 1994 adaptation |
| The eldest Wheeler | January 13, 1995, Nashville | season 1 | a 2019 satire, a 2019 comedy, a 2021 fantasy film |
The T-shirt of the household's favorite character.
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The second season's arrivals
The second season adds two faces, at two very different ages. Max Mayfield, the skater who arrives from California, was born April 16, 2002 in Texas, and so was fifteen at the time of shooting. She has since become one of the most in-demand actresses of her generation: a horror film in three parts in 2021, a musical short the same year, and an award-winning drama in 2022.
The other arrival is a child from Atlanta born October 1, 2006, first credited as a recurring character, promoted to series regular the following season. Her character, a little sister with a lethal vocabulary, has become one of the audience's favorites. She has been seen elsewhere in a 2018 comedy and in a 2022 Halloween movie.
A surprising figureBetween the youngest and the oldest actress on the show, there are fifty years between the birth dates — and they share scenes.
The third season, and the ice cream parlor duo
The summer 1985 season introduces Robin Buckley, Steve's coworker at Scoops Ahoy. Born July 8, 1998 in New York, the daughter of two very well-known actors, she shot a film about 1969 Hollywood that same year, before a comedy in 2023 and a voice role in an animated film in 2024.
The same season sets up another presence, more discreet: the long-distance girlfriend of the boy in the cap, born March 10, 2003 in New York State. Her path is unusual, since it runs mostly through the stage: she held a title role on Broadway between 2013 and 2014, then a part in an award-winning musical between 2015 and 2016.
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Season 1
three arrivals: the child from the lab, the Byers mother, the eldest Wheeler
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Season 2
the skater girl from California and the outspoken little sister
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Season 3
the co-worker from the ice cream shop and the long-distance pen pal
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Season 4
the friend from the marching band, arrived from Ireland
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Season 5
a scientist played by a 1980s movie actress
The latest arrivals
The fourth season brings in an Irish actress born November 7, 2001 in County Donegal, known for holding the lead role in a literary series between 2017 and 2019, chosen at the time from among hundreds of candidates. Her character, keen on marching band and books, grows in importance in the following season.
The final season, for its part, brings in a film actress born September 26, 1956 in Maryland, whose face is tied to two science fiction films from 1984 and 1991 and to a fantasy series from the late 1980s. She plays a military scientist there — a role that, in a show fed on 1980s references, looks like a knowing wink.
The ones you forget, and that count
Two roles often missing from the lists deserve a place on them. The suburban mother, born March 1, 1971 in New York, has been there since the first season: on screen in a 2003 superhero movie, then in two major TV series, one of which earned her an Emmy nomination.
The other is the friend who disappears in the first season, born June 27, 1997 in Atlanta. Three episodes, and an Emmy nomination for best guest actress — one of the rare cases where a secondary character set off a wave of protest from viewers. She then held a regular role in a high school series starting in 2017, and the title role of a comedy in 2018.
- Three episodesthat was all it took for the audience to demand justice for a character
- An Emmy nominationin the Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series category
- A lasting effectthe show ended up answering the controversy in the following season
- A career launcheda series regular role the very next year, then a lead role in film
The figure of the heroine, on the shelf.
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The summary table
To see at a glance who arrived when, and at what age. The ages are calculated as of the air date of the season they arrived in.
| Arrival | Birth | Origin | Age on arrival |
|---|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | 2004 | Spain, British parents | 12 years old |
| Season 1 | 1971 | Minnesota | 44 years old |
| Season 1 | 1995 | Tennessee | 21 years old |
| Season 1 | 1971 | New York | 45 years |
| Season 1 | 1997 | Georgia | 19 years old |
| Season 2 | 2002 | Texas | 15 years old |
| Season 2 | 2006 | Georgia | 11 years old |
| Season 3 | 1998 | New York | 20 years old |
| Season 3 | 2003 | New York | 16 years old |
| Season 4 | 2001 | Ireland | 20 years old |
| Season 5 | 1956 | Maryland | 69 years old |
What the show changed for them
For the youngest ones, the effect is massive: two of them went from anonymity to the poster of studio films in less than five years, with a shooting pace that in fact complicated the series' schedule. For the older ones, the effect is different: the series gave a second visibility to actresses the film industry was employing less.
It is one of the traits that sets this cast apart from other teen shows. It does not bet on a single generation, but on coexistence: children learning the craft live, and experienced actresses feeding them their lines. The show ran long enough for the first group to catch up with the second.
Where to see them again after the series
To keep going, there is plenty to explore. Two studio films released in 2019 and a detective series begun in 2020 for the youngest. A drama from 2022 and a horror film from 2021 for the skateboarder. A comedy from 2023 and a voice role in an animated film from 2024 for the coworker at the ice cream parlor. A literary series from 2017 to 2019 for the Irish arrival.
And for the ones who were there before the series, the reverse path works very well: a 1988 fantasy comedy, a 1990 fairy tale, a 1984 science fiction film and its 1991 sequel make a good introduction to the visual culture the series feeds on. It is even the best way to understand why these actresses were chosen.
A note on methodThe birth dates and the roles cited come from each actress's public encyclopedia entry, checked one by one. The lists circulating on social media regularly contain ages that are wrong by one or two years.
The poster that brings the whole party together.
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Frequently asked questions
Who plays the show's female lead?
An actress born on February 19, 2004 in Marbella, to British parents, who was twelve when filming began. She has headlined studio films since 2019 and has produced her own film series since 2020.
How many lead actresses does the show have?
About ten, depending on whether you count the recurring characters, spread over five seasons: three as early as the first, two in the second, two in the third, one in the fourth and one in the fifth.
Who is the youngest?
The actress who plays the outspoken little sister, born October 1, 2006 in Atlanta: she was eleven when she arrived, as a recurring character, before becoming a regular the following season.
Which actress was already famous before the show?
The actress who plays the Byers mother, a figure of American cinema since the mid-1980s, with an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress for a 1994 literary adaptation.
Who has been nominated for an Emmy?
Two actresses: the one who plays the friend who disappears in the first season, for only three episodes, in the best guest actress category, and the one who plays the mother from the suburban neighborhood, for a role in another show.
Which actress joins in the final season?
An actress born on September 26, 1956 in Maryland, known for two science fiction films from 1984 and 1991, in which she plays an army scientist.
Which actress comes from Ireland?
The actress who plays the marching band friend, born November 7, 2001 in County Donegal, who broke through in the lead role of a literary series aired from 2017 to 2019.
Where to see them again after the series?
In studio films starting in 2019, a 2022 drama, a 2023 comedy, a 2024 animated film, and for the most experienced among them in the 1980s classics that inspired the show.