The Stars Of Stranger Things Want Netflix To Bring Back This Beloved Show [Exclusive]

It feels like it's been 84 years since the last time we saw the Hawkins gang in "Stranger Things," and anticipations are sky high for the fifth and final season of the Netflix show. It helps that we know next to nothing about what will happen, with the exception of the return of a beloved main character who was on the brink of death last season.

This is to say that, when /Film had the opportunity for an exclusive interview with "Stranger Things" stars Finn Wolfhard and Gaten Matarazzo ahead of their turn as presenters in the Crunchyroll Anime Awards (an event that shined a ray of hope on the future of anime), the adventures of Mike, Dustin and the gang loomed over our heads. Still, knowing how secretive the show is, there was little chance to learn much about the new season. Instead, the two actors decided to spread the good word on another beloved Netflix series, one that left us too early.

When asked what shows or movies they watch in-between projects, Finn Wolfhard was quick to praise a David Fincher project. "We watched 'Mindhunter' season 2," Wolfhard said. "We re-watched it together [with Matarazzo]. So good."

Immediately, Wolfhard and Matarazzo lamented the lack of a third season, and the two proceeded to ask Netflix to do the right thing. "Give David Fincher as much money as he needs," Wolfhard said.

"I know you got it. I know you have it. Do it for us. Just for me and Finn," Matarazzo added.

Created by Joe Penhall, with Fincher serving as showrunner and director of most episodes, "Mindhunter" was one of the best shows Netflix ever produced and released. Based on John Douglas and Mark Olshaker's book, it follows the founding of the Behavioral Science Unit at the FBI in the late 1970s as criminal profiling starts becoming adopted in investigations. It felt like the spiritual successor to Fincher's work in "Seven" and "Zodiac," a psychological thriller show with exquisite directing, writing and fantastic characters played by one hell of a great cast that included Jonathan Groff, Holt McCallany, and Anna Torv.

Unfortunately, after 2 seasons, "Mindhunter" was quickly cast aside by Netflix, who has treated the future of the show much in the same way Lucasfilm has treated Rian Johnson's promised "Star Wars" trilogy. This is to say, for a few years, audiences were led to believe Fincher would eventually return to "Mindhunter," but he still hasn't.

In 2020, Fincher said the show was put on hold at his request, citing the huge expenses required to produce the show and the exhausting process of making it. Still, it's been five years since then and there is still no sign of "Mindhunter" season 3. Is it officially canceled? Not exactly, but Fincher has seemingly put the final nail in the show's coffin. At this point, perhaps the stars of Netflix's most successful show pleading to bring back "Mindhunter" might just be our best hope of someone dropping a boatload of money on Fincher's lap to bring back the show.

In case you think we did not ask a single "Stranger Things" question, you'd be mistaken. Given the theme of the night was anime, and given how much "Stranger Things" is ingrained in '80s pop culture, we asked Finn Wolfhard and Gaten Matarazzo what anime their characters would be obsessed with. Their answers make us wish there was a "Stranger Things" season that covered the '90s.

We've seen plenty of references to popular American pop culture staples of the 1980s in "Stranger Things," mostly live-action Amblin movies, and horror titles like "The Thing" and "A Nightmare on Elm Street." But the 1980s is also the time when anime really started becoming a global phenomenon, thanks to the advent of VHS and movies like "Akira," as ultra-violent, ultra-dark anime movies and Original Video Animation (made-for-video anime) began making waves both in Japan and abroad.

When asked what anime their "Stranger Things" characters would be into, regardless of decade, Matarazzo was quick to point out Dustin would be hugely into one of the most legendary anime of all time — "One Piece."

"Just by the way he dresses too, like there's like a vibrance there, and the color scheme is just like super captivating," Matarazzo said. "[Dustin] is super into neon pop, that 'One Piece' has always had. There's a vibrance and an energy there that I think really feels like Dustin."

Wolfhard's pick is fan-favorite '00s thriller "Death Note," which he describes as the kind of dark and serious show Mike would be into. "[Mike] has a 'Thing' poster in his room," Wolfhard said, "a good comparison of something that's sort of horror."

Lastly, if "Stranger Things" made it to the 1990s, Matarazzo knows what the next big thing every one of the Hawkins kids (well, adults by that point) would be into. "I also know for a fact that when 'Pokémon' comes out in the '90s, Dustin will be an absolute fiend, as will all the guys." Granted, at that point Dustin will be nearly 30, but it's never too late to be into "Pokémon."

"[Dustin is] the first one to get a Game Boy Color," Wolfhard added. 

"Stranger Things" season 5 is set to debut on Netflix sometime this year.