Stranger Things 2 Balances Bigger Scope With Personal Stories

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Natalia Dyer and Joe Keery are both most known for their portrayal of characters Nancy Wheeler and Steve Harrington on Netflix’s Stranger Things. They’ll be reprising and expanding on their roles in the upcoming second season. Joining them in Season 2 is Dacre Montgomery, who’ll be playing the newly arrived bad boy, Billy. Season 2 of Stranger Things premieres on Netflix on October 27, 2017.


Screen Rant got to chat with Natalie Dyer, Joe Keery, and Dacre Montgomery on Press Day, where we discussed how the characters of Nancy and Steve have developed since the end of Season 1 of Stranger Things, what attracted Dacre to the role of Billy in the new season, and which characters they most relate to on the show.


SR: Stranger Things is a pop-culture phenomenon and it’s amazing. You’re two characters [Steve and Nancy] are a little different now being changed by the first season. You’re more of a babysitter this season, Joe. Talk to me about the character development you guys had to go through a little bit.
 

Joe Keery: After the events of last year, our two characters ended up at the end of the season together and um… Without spoiling too much it’s like we’re both going through like massive…


Natalia Dyer: Just addressing kind of… It’s great. You get the impression there’s time that’s passed between season one and season two and you get the impression that maybe, you know, we’re just kind of starting to recognize, and deal with, and cope, and it’s coming to the surface

SR: Right.
 

Joe Keery: Things are changing I’d say. A lot of things feel like their changing.
Natalia Dyer: Change-a-coming.


SR: Dacre, you rock a sweet mullet and your character is kind of a bad-ass. What attracted you to the role? I mean, obviously it’s Stranger Things, right?
 

Dacre Montgomery: Yeah. I mean, that attracted me definitely, but you and I, we were talking about Power Rangers. I think it’s exactly that juxtaposition between protagonist and antagonist. So, not just to work on the show, which was my main reason, but to give you something else. It’s definitely… The qualities that were laid out to me of a person that’s basically coming to the town to ruffle feathers and somebody that’s unpredictable, I mean these thing are all very attractive to me about playing the role, and even more so then I could have imagined once I got in the space, in the world, with the Duffer’s, with my fellow amazing co-stars. You know, to be able to explore that realm was, yeah, it was great.
 

SR: Amazing. The scope of the show seems bigger, but it seems more personal this season. Obviously there’s more focus on your guys’ characters a lot. How do they work that fine line? It’s a very fine line that you guys do in this season of keeping it on a big scope but still a very personal story.

 

Joe Keery: Keeping the heart of the show?
 

SR: Right.

 

Joe Keery: That’s the thing they’re so good about. Keeping kind of the core…

Natalia Dyer: They are.


Joe Keery: But also changing the… it’s not a repeat of the first season, which is important. I don’t really know how they do it. 

Honestly, it’s like… maybe it’s because we were able to like set a base for what the show is the first season so now we can kind of take some liberties this season. That might be it. Yeah, I don’t know, but they do such a great job of it, that’s for sure

SR: Now, based on your personalities, which character do you think you would be in the Stranger Things world? Obviously, not your own characters but who would you be in the Stranger Things universe?
 

Dacre Montgomery: That’s a really good question

Joe Keery: I’d probably be Mike I’d say.

SR: You’d be Mike?
 

Joe Keery: I think I’d be Mike, yeah.

SR: Dacre?
 

Dacre Montgomery: I think I’d be more like Joe’s character (Steve).

SR: Really?
 

Dacre: Yeah. Well, what we see him become in this in the second season.

SR: Natalia?
 

Natalia Dyer: Huh. Um… Maybe like Joyce. I don’t know. I tend to freak out sometimes about things [Laughs] Yeah, I don’t know. That a hard question.

SR: Alright, well, using a Hashtag to sum up what we can possibly see in Season 2, what would your hashtag be for Stranger Things season 2?

 

Dacre: #MoreStakes. Higher Stakes?

Joe Keery: Uh, #WillTheWise
Natalia: Hmmm. Yeah. #JusticeForBarb Okay already? [Laughs]