Stranger Things documentary: Show has ‘kick-ass’ female characters

Female cast members of Stranger Things, including Sadie Sink and Natalia Dyer, have praised the way the show was written with so many “kick-ass” women in it.

They were appearing in a behind-the-scenes documentary, One Last Adventure: The Making Of Stranger Things Season 5, which was released on Netflix on Monday.

It also features twin brothers Matt and Ross Duffer, who created, wrote and directed the hit show.

Cara Buono, who plays Karen Wheeler, the mother of main characters Nancy, Mike and Holly, said it was great to see her character evolve from playing “the mum” in the earlier series, to an action hero in the final instalments.

“The mums in 80s’ movies weren’t just like ‘the mum’,” she said.

“You look at Sigourney Weaver and Linda Hamilton in Terminator – I mean kick-ass mums.

“Season one she’s ‘the mum’, and then she starts to evolve.

“The evolution to being an action hero is the natural progression for me. I think maybe it’s all I ever wanted to do.”

Speaking about the scene where her character singlehandedly takes on and fights a terrifying demogorgon, Buono said: “I love that the Duffers wrote this for me.

“They could have written it like she’s screaming, and she’s running away, and she’s cowering.

“But she’s in her wet nightgown, coming out to kick ass, transforming into a warrior.”

Dyer, who plays her daughter Nancy, said: “They have always written strong women. I’ve always loved what they’ve given me.

“It’s a lot of body positioning, looking a certain way. I found that fun. It’s a more exciting day for me than just sitting talking.”

Sink, who was first introduced to viewers as Max Mayfield in the second series of Stranger Things, described playing the skateboarding and computer game-loving character.

She said: “When I was young I didn’t really understand the impact of playing a female character like this on a show of this scale.

“Now that I have a little more perspective, I can see that yes, Max is a good role model for girls out there.”

The documentary also described how the final series began shooting before the final script had even been written.

Showing the first read-through of the last episode, the Duffer brothers tell the cast that they only finished writing it the previous Wednesday, leaving them all in suspense as to the way it concludes.