Stranger Things Season 5 is set to appear somewhere on the 2025 TV schedule, and fans are hyped. While one of Netflix’s best shows returning is reason to be excited, there's also the ever-looming threat of one or multiple main characters dying. Apparently, series alum Gaten Matarazzo is willing to sacrifice his character, Dustin, to such a fate. It's not all that surprising, given the actor previously said he thinks more characters should've been killed off by now. Yet fans aren't holding back their reactions to Matarazzo's idea for Dustin's demise.
How Gaten Matarazzo Would Want Dustin To Die
On the most recent episode of Mythical Kitchen, the Honor Society actor was asked if he would mind his character Dustin Henderson dying. Surprisingly, the star immediately responded saying he would be okay with it. In fact, he had already pitched a death scene to the writers. As the 22-year-old star said, if his character's death were to happen, it would have to include the element of surprise:
Something you wouldn’t expect. You wouldn’t expect this character to die. So it’s got to be a thing where we’re all in danger.
The LEGO Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy actor then went on to describe a Russian Roulette death of sorts, describing a scene in which it's known that someone could get hurt but you don’t know who will. In the pitch, Gaten Matarazzo describes the core group running down a hallway with gunshots flying all around and, when they get to safety, Dustin is shockingly revealed to have gotten hit, blood visibly starting to spread across his shirt. You can check out the full pitch here:
@mythicalkitchen ♬ original sound - Mythical Kitchen
I wonder what series creators the Duffer Brothers thought about that idea. Maybe a tad anticlimactic but, hey, maybe it fits into their story well. It’s just not how I would expect a main character like Dustin to go out, and fans of the show seemed to agree.
Fans Didn’t Hold Back With Their Reactions To The Pitch
Stranger Things fans were not pleased with the Angry Birds 2 actor, but not for the reason you may think. Upon hearing the pitch, fans flooded the TikTok video's comments with dismay, not in potential mourning, but to express how unimpressed they were with the idea. Here are the ones that best summed up the overall sentiments:
- Oh man, thats never been done a thousand times before- Bobby Blocks
- That is THE most generic character death though like what?- low
- I know it’s generic but we know we would NOT expect this with frickin DUSTIN, - nattie
- Nah, I’m not on board. - Faralfatale_
- That's literally exactly what I would expect. - nannerpuddin
I think it’s hilarious that the comments are more disappointed by the lack of creativity than the actual death itself. Though, in fairness, one could argue that Gaten Matarazzo set himself up by claiming it would need to be something you wouldn’t expect and then describing one of the most common deaths in TV history. I can picture it perfectly in my head, but that’s because I’ve seen it happen so many times.
That type of death was even already done in Stranger Things Season 3, with the death of fan favorite Alexei, the sweet hearted Russian scientist. He’s shot at the fair by the Russian assassin, and we watch his smile fade as blood slowly blooms from the center of his white shirt.
While I think Gaten Matarazzo more so meant that his character's actual death needs to be unexpected, and not the method of killing him off, the point still stands. For the most part, Stranger Things deaths are pretty gruesome, given the supernatural element to the show. The majority are not killed in typical ways, so I think Matarazzo owes it to Dustin to have a little imagination and think up a more creative, shocking and emotional death than just a stray bullet wound.
Perhaps the tame ending for Dustin has to do with the fact that the showrunners brutally killed off Eddie Munson in front of him at the end of Season 4. Eddie’s introduction to the show was one of the best parts of Season 4 and, while some fan theories spark hope for his return, his death by demogorgon bats seemed pretty permanent. It might be too cruel to the fans to see Dustin (or any other main character, for that matter) experience the same fate.
Until we find out what Stranger Things Season 5 has in store, feel free to catch up on the first four seasons now with a Netflix subscription.
