how old were the actors in stranger things

The core kid actors in Stranger Things were all young teens when the show began, and most were a few years older than the characters they played on screen.

Main kids – Season 1 ages

Here are approximate real-life ages of the main young cast while filming Season 1 (shot mainly in 2015, released 2016).

• Millie Bobby Brown (Eleven) – about 11–12 years old.

• Finn Wolfhard (Mike Wheeler) – about 12–13 years old.

• Gaten Matarazzo (Dustin Henderson) – 13 during filming of Season 1.

• Caleb McLaughlin (Lucas Sinclair) – about 13–14 years old.

• Noah Schnapp (Will Byers) – about 11–12 years old.

• Sadie Sink (Max Mayfield, introduced Season 2) – joined later; she was about 14–15 when filming her first season.

Older teen characters

The actors playing the older teens were in their early to mid‑20s when the show started.

• Joe Keery (Steve Harrington) – about 23 when Season 1 released.

• Natalia Dyer (Nancy Wheeler) – about 21 for Season 1.

• Charlie Heaton (Jonathan Byers) – about 22 for Season 1.

• Maya Hawke (Robin Buckley, introduced Season 3) – about 20 when she joined.

Adults in the cast

The adult leads were already well established and significantly older than their on‑screen kids.

• Winona Ryder (Joyce Byers) – about 44–45 across the early seasons.

• David Harbour (Jim Hopper) – mid‑40s during the first seasons.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.