What if Stranger Things came out in the ’90s? Fans have “perfect” recast

Stranger Things is known for being an ’80s throwback, but fans have the perfect cast in mind if the Netflix series was made a decade later.

Ghostbusters. New Coke. The NeverEnding Story. Stranger Things loves throwing a couple of heavy-handed ’80s references our way every now and again. The heavily-stylized time period is one of the great appeals of the Netflix show, so it’s no wonder they like to remind us once in a while.

Even the current Stranger Things cast includes a few famous faces of the era. But for fans, it’s sometimes fun to imagine who would play the now world-famous cast if the show had taken place in another decade altogether.

Recently, the ’90s was the name of the game, and one online thread seems to have hit the right note among viewers.

Stranger Things fans have “perfect” ’90s recast

In a post on the Stranger Things subreddit, one Redditor shared a collage of actors that could have been in the cast if the show had been created in the ’90s.

The fancast included choices such as Natalie Portman as Eleven, Kieran Culkin as Will, Elijah Wood as Mike, and Brandon Adams as Lucas. Other casting included Ben Savage as Dustin and Linda Cardellini as Nancy.

Reddit

But it didn’t stop there. They also went about casting some of the characters added to the series later on. Christina Ricci as Max, Edward Furlong as Jonathan, and Ashton Kutcher as Steve were also notable suggestions.

Of course, not all these castings really work. A lot of the choices for younger Stranger Things characters would have been much too old to feasibly play children at the time, despite how cool those picks might seem.

However, there were a couple of top-tier pulls. Drew Barrymore as Chrissy from Season 4 is a great choice because of how much it draws from modern pop culture influence.

Barrymore was famously killed-off in the opening scene of 1996’s Scream, despite being the biggest name attached. Meanwhile, Chrissy was killed in the opening episode of Season 4, so this casting makes a lot of sense.

Other fans were quick to comment, sharing their thoughts (good and bad) about the hypothetical Stranger Things cast.

“This is like the perfect casting. I would watch this 100 percent,” said one comment.

“Elijah Wood’s tiny ass would NOT have been Mike, he would’ve been Will 100%. Edward Furlong as Jonathan, on the other hand, couldn’t be more spot-on,” said another.

“Harrison Ford as Hopper is as good as a recasting gets,” said a third.

In all honesty, a ’90s Stranger Things might not be completely off the table. (At least, in the current sense.) Season 4 took place in March 1986, and we know Stranger Things Season 5 is going to include a significant time jump. Perhaps we’ll finally be heading into the ’90s after all — but don’t count on Harrison Ford showing up.