Finn Wolfhard Has Zero Concerns About Being ‘Relevant’ After ‘Stranger Things’ Ends
Stranger Things took the streaming world by storm when it premiered on Netflix back in 2018. The show follows a group of friends as they navigate the world, its parallel universe, and plenty of other, well, strange things.
The show is preparing to air its final season, which doesn’t have an official release date yet, but early rumors suggest it might not premiere until sometime in 2025 (the show is notorious for taking way too long between seasons). And Finn Wolfhard, who plays the lead role as Mike Wheeler, once said he’s not worried about remaining “relevant” after the show finally does come to a close.
Finn Wolfhard of ‘Stranger Things’ isn’t worried about relevance when the Netflix show ends
Wolfhard landed his first major role as the star of Stranger Things when he was just 13 years old. And ever since, he’s become a household name and has been one of the most well-known child actors of this decade. Now, at 20 years old, he’s already looking toward a future that doesn’t involve filming the popular Netflix show. But he said in an interview with GQ that one thing he doesn’t worry about is remaining “relevant” after filming finally closes out.
“For me, I’m not concerned with being relevant at all, ever. I’m just concerned with the people around me and the jobs that I’m doing day-to-day,” he told the magazine. “When things feel really overwhelming and big, it can feel even more big to kid actors who just feel like it all can be gone in an instant.”
Of course, being a child actor isn’t easy, and many child actors are ultra-famous as kids but then kind of disappear as time goes on. For Wolfhard, though, the show was filmed while he transitioned from a child to an adult, so it’s likely he’ll have plenty of other jobs once the series ends. Still Wolfhard said it’s “necessary” to take a break from acting and also get some real-life experience. His co-star Noah Schnapp, for example, is currently enrolled at the University of Pennsylvania, where he’s pursuing a business degree.
What are Wolfhard’s plans after ‘Stranger Things?’
Once the show ends, Wolfhard will need to figure out his next steps, but he’s taken on other jobs in between filming seasons of the show. At the time of the GQ interview in February 2023, Wolfhard was also starring in Jesse Eisenberg’s When You Finish Saving the World.
Wolfhard said that he and his co-stars are all “on their own quests in real life,” adding that he doesn’t talk to them every day, but that’s not a bad thing. “We’re not on everyday-text vibes in any way, and not because… it’s like … Do you text your cousins every day? Probably not. They’re our family. We’ll talk on each other’s birthdays. We’ll talk once in a while. But in the same way that family works, if I ever needed anything, they’re there.”
Wolfhard added that Winona Ryder has become a huge role model for him. “She’s a homebody and doesn’t care about being relevant either,” he said. “She just wants to be fulfilled.” Time will tell what’s next for Wolfhard, but he’ll certainly always be remembered for Stranger Things, whether he stays “relevant” or not.
