Gaten Matarazzo explains how he thinks Eddie's death will affect Dustin in Stranger Things season 5. After several years away, the Duffer Brothers' hit horror/sci-fi series finally returned earlier this year with its explosive fourth season. Stranger Things first launched on Netflix in 2016 and has since become a cultural phenomenon, with Mike (Finn Wolfhard), Lucas (Caleb McLaughlin), El (Millie Bobby Brown), Will (Noah Schnapp), and Matarazzo's Dustin captivating audiences. While all the series regulars return for Stranger Things season 4, the latest season also introduces several new characters.
Joseph Quinn's Eddie Munson quickly became a fan favorite upon his introduction in season 4. After finding himself on the run for a murder he didn't commit, Eddie goes from being the leader of Hawkins High School's Hellfire Club to being one of the major players in the fight against Vecna. Although the friendship between Dustin and Steve (Joe Keery) was an important dynamic in season 3, season 4 sees Dustin grow very close with Eddie. The strong bond between the two characters ultimately made Eddie's death in the Stranger Things season 4 finale all the more emotional.
In a new interview with TV Insider, Matarazzo reveals how he thinks Eddie's death will affect Dustin moving into season 5. The actor explains that while he doesn't know what the Duffer Brothers have in store for his character, he would imagine that Dustin will be permanently changed after having his close friend die in his arms. What's more, Matarazzo says that Dustin likely lacks any sort of closure from the event, especially since he left Eddie's body in the Upside Down in order to escape. Check out Matarazzo's full comment below:
"I don’t know what [Matt and Ross Duffer] have in store and writing-wise, but I think going into it, there’s no denying that there’s going to need to be a shift there and there’s going to need to be a bit of focus on the fact that nobody can really come back from seeing that.
“[Dustin] has dealt with loss in the past. He’s seen horrible things, but to have a very close friend of his brutally die, not just there in front of him, but directly with him is [another thing]. The one thing that I’m always thinking about going into it is that we don’t necessarily see it happen, but Dustin would’ve had to have left [Eddie] there to get out and leave himself. And that’s something that I was thinking about during the scene with Eddie’s uncle. Because of the leg injury and because of Dustin’s lack of upper body strength, he would’ve needed to leave [Eddie’s] body there while needing to get out himself. And if they’re going to play with that, it’s something I’ll be thinking about quite a lot.”
While the ending of season 4 doesn't explore the ramifications of Eddie's death too much, the final moments of the Stranger Things finale do include a scene between Dustin and Eddie's uncle. The moment is very emotional and poignant as Dustin explains that Eddie sacrificed his life so that the entire town of Hawkins can survive. Outside of that moment, however, it's clear that season 5 will have a lot of room to explore exactly how Eddie's death affects Dustin, perhaps with Matarazzo's character being in a darker place than audiences are used to seeing him.
For much of Stranger Things, Dustin has been a source of comic relief. With season 5 set up to be darker than any previous season, it would make for an interesting change of pace to see Dustin still reeling from Eddie's loss and perhaps chasing a sense of closure. It remains to be seen what Stranger Things season 5 has in store for viewers but, if Matarazzo's comments are anything to go by, fans might be getting a very different version of Dustin than they've ever seen before.
Source: TV Insider