Millie Bobby Brown Debuts Red Hair at Stranger Things 5 Premiere

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Millie Bobby Brown dialed it up to 11 for her latest look.

The actress showed off her new red hair at the Los Angeles premiere of Stranger Things Season 5 on November 6th, after sporting blonde hair since February.

Millie attended the premiere of the final season of her Netflix series with her husband, Jake Bongiovi. She wore a unique, see-through black gown by Rodarte, adorned with feathers and tulle, playfully calling it her outfit “for the funeral of the show,” as reported by Vogue.

Everyone noticed Millie’s stunning new burgundy hair color! She styled it in an elegant updo with soft pieces around her face for the event. Her stylist, Pete Burkill, shared that she and Millie had been hoping to try this shade for a while.

He told Vogue in a November 7th interview that they had been wanting to use red for some time. He explained that it provided just the right combination of elegance, brightness, and fun for the event.

At the premiere, Millie switched into a fitted, short red dress that complemented her newly dyed hair, and swapped her sparkly earrings for simpler hoops. She and Jake, who was wearing a matching red velvet suit, posed for photos together.

Jake isn’t the only person that the Enola Holmes actress took photos with at the premiere, though.

In a video from TopMob News, he jokingly asked, “Am I as handsome as Jake?” The actress laughed and moved closer. He then playfully responded, “I’m not, and I can’t help it – it’s just how I’m made.”

Keep reading for more about Stranger Things…

In a video from TopMob News, he jokingly asked if he was as good-looking as Jake. The actress laughed and moved closer as he responded, “I’m not, and I can’t help it—it’s just how I’m made.”

Keep reading for more secrets about Stranger Things…

I’ve been a huge fan of the Duffer brothers ever since I learned about how Stranger Things came to be! Before that incredible show, they worked on M. Night Shyamalan’s Wayward Pines. It’s amazing to me that the initial idea for Stranger Things actually started as something called Montauk – it’s wild to think how things can change during the creative process!

Matt explained to The Daily Beast in 2016 that once you’ve settled on a title, it can be very difficult to convince others to consider something different. He said that when they first suggested Stranger Things, it wasn’t immediately well-received.

The creators of the show originally planned to film on Long Island, but it turned out to be too difficult to do so.

Matt told The Hollywood Reporter they chose Montauk as a filming location because of its beautiful coastline and its connection to the movie Jaws, which they all love. However, they quickly realized shooting on Long Island during the winter would be too difficult and costly, making the location impractical.

Atlanta ultimately became the home base for production.

Before Netflix decided to air the show, around 20 other networks had already rejected it, according to Vulture. Executives at those networks worried viewers wouldn’t connect with a series centered around four child actors.

4. To play Eleven, then 12-year-old Millie Bobby Brown had to say goodbye to her hair.

In 2018, at PaleyFest, the actress described shaving her head as the most liberating experience of her life. She explained that with the final cut of her hair, she felt completely exposed and could no longer hide. Looking in the mirror, she understood her purpose was to inspire others, realizing that beauty doesn’t depend on having hair.

She found inspiration for her role in both Charlize Theron’s performance in Mad Max: Fury Road and old yearbook pictures of her fellow actress, Winona Ryder.

She mentioned that Winona Ryder’s short, pixie haircut was really stylish years ago, and it inspired her to try the look herself!

The British actress shared a surprising source she used to nail her American accent: Miley Cyrus’s Hannah Montana. She told Jimmy Fallon on The Tonight Show that the show was “so goodt,” praising everything about it and crediting it with helping her perfect the accent.

When the Duffer brothers were casting for the core group of kids in the show, they actually had the young actors perform scenes from the movie Stand By Me during their auditions. It was a fantastic way to see how they connected with that kind of coming-of-age story and how well they worked together – really key for building that believable friend dynamic we all love!

The brothers had a specific vision for the character of Mike, but that changed after Finn Wolfhard’s audition.

Matt explained to The Daily Beast in 2016 that Mike initially reminded him of the character Mikey from The Goonies. However, Finn Wolfhard brought a nervous, restless energy to the audition, so they tailored the character to fit his personality.

Gaten Matarazzo, who played Dustin, also had a big impact on the show’s development. According to Matt, they initially envisioned Dustin as a typical nerd, but after meeting Gaten, they rewrote the character to better suit his personality and talents.

After the show featured Eleven’s love for Eggo waffles, Kellogg’s experienced a notable boost in sales. They reported a 14% increase in consumption towards the end of 2017, coinciding with the release of season two. October of that year also saw a record number of social media mentions for the product.

In early 2018, David Harbour became an internet sensation when he agreed to take a fan’s senior portraits for her. It started when she tweeted, asking how many retweets it would take to convince him. He responded that 25,000 retweets would do, with the added condition that he got to wear the school sweatshirt and hold a trombone. True to his promise, Harbour followed through and took the photos.

He jokingly predicted on Instagram that he’d be the one to playfully ‘hijack’ someone else’s high school senior photos years down the line – and it seems he followed through 24 years later.

Later that year, Harbour playfully offered to marry a fan if she could get 125,000 retweets and a piece of wedding cake. He became officially ordained and ended up performing the ceremony while dressed as his character, Chief Hopper.

Fans often speculated that Eleven might be Hopper’s biological daughter, but he ultimately became a father figure to her. A touching detail revealed in the season two finale showed Eleven wearing a blue braided bracelet – a meaningful accessory Hopper always wore, crafted from a ribbon belonging to his deceased daughter – at her school dance.

Millie Bobby Brown, who plays Eleven, revealed that her first kiss was with Finn Wolfhard (Mike) during season one of the show. She described the experience as ‘strange,’ explaining that having a large crew watching made it feel overwhelming.

She shared what her co-star secretly told her right before they had to kiss for a second time on the show.

She recounted on The Tonight Show in 2017 that he warned her he was about to kiss her, but did so in a very strange way. She described him saying, ‘I’m coming in,’ but doing it as if he were a ventriloquist – it was a bizarre experience.

Natalia Dyer and Charlie Heaton, who star as a couple on the show, started dating in 2016 and have generally kept their romance out of the public eye.

Natalia shared with Refinery29 that she values keeping her personal life—relationships with family and friends—private. However, she also noted that collaborating with someone you live with can be a lot of fun, which is a unique experience.

Surprisingly, Joe Keery’s popular character, Steve Harrington, was originally intended to die at the end of the first season.

According to Ross, they quickly grew fond of actor Joe Keery during the first season of the show. This affection led them to create a storyline where his character, Steve, teams up with Jonathan and Nancy to help resolve the central conflict. Originally, Steve was intended to be a stereotypical, unpleasant athlete, but Keery brought much more depth to the role.

18. Also slated to perish was Eleven. Yes, really. 

In the book Stranger Things: Worlds Turned Upside Down, Ross Duffer explained that the original plan was for Eleven to sacrifice herself to save everyone. However, when they realized the show might continue beyond one season, they had to change that. They realized the show wouldn’t work without Eleven, and Millie Bobby Brown was a key part of that. They knew if Stranger Things continued, Eleven needed to survive.

The seventh episode of the second season, “The Lost Sister,” nearly didn’t make it onto screens. The Duffer brothers told Vulture they worried the episode—which focuses on Eleven’s search for another child with similar experiences—would disrupt the story’s flow.

Matt explained that as they started writing the episode, they questioned whether it was even necessary. They seriously considered cutting it entirely, but the planned ending involving Eleven just didn’t feel right without it. Ultimately, they decided the episode was essential.

Initially, Eleven was supposed to have a brother. The episode introducing him was even planned to be called “The Lost Brother.”

Once the audition was open to all young actors, Linnea Berthelsen won the role. The episode eventually showed Eleven meeting her “sister,” Kali. According to Matt, Linnea and Millie (who plays Eleven) connected well, and Millie specifically requested to work with Linnea.

Nicola Coughlan, the actress known for her role in Bridgerton, originally tried out for the part of Robin. However, she later landed the role of Penelope Featherington. Maya Hawke ended up getting the role of Robin, and Nicola admitted Hawke was much better suited for it than she would have been.

She explained that auditioning teaches actors a valuable lesson: don’t take rejection personally. It simply means certain roles aren’t a good fit, and that’s okay. Everyone is suited for different things.

Before becoming known for her role as Sarah on the Netflix series Outer Banks, Madelyn Cline played the character Tina, a popular but unkind student, in the second season of the show.

To land the role of Billy, Max’s rebellious older stepbrother, Australian actor Dacre Montgomery created a memorable audition tape. He told GQ he aimed to impress the Duffer brothers with something a little bold and playful.

Dacre took a big chance by filming himself dancing in a G-string to 80s hits like “Come on Eileen” and “Hungry Like the Wolf.” He worried about the video, thinking it could either ruin his career or finally land him a role. Luckily, the risk worked out in his favor.

As the show entered its third season, Deadline reported significant pay raises for the cast. The younger actors saw their per-episode earnings jump from around $30,000 to over $200,000, and potentially as high as $250,000. Winona Ryder and David Harbour were reportedly earning between $300,000 and $350,000 per episode, while Natalia Dyer and Charlie Heaton were making $100,000 to $150,000.

Priah Ferguson was originally scheduled for just one episode in season two as Erica, Lucas’s spirited younger sister. However, the Duffer brothers were so impressed with her performance that they continued to include her, eventually making her a main cast member in the next season.

Because the young actors were still growing during filming, the costume designers had a hard time making sure their clothes fit consistently from scene to scene.

It was a real challenge keeping up with how fast the kids were growing,” costume designer Kim Wilcox explained to TopMob News. “One child, in particular, was growing out of his shoes every three weeks – about half a size at a time! To solve this, we started buying five pairs of the same shoe from brands that offered a wide range of sizes. That way, when a kid had a growth spurt, we’d always have a pair that fit.

The Duffer brothers drew inspiration from films like The Goonies, E.T., and Stand By Me, but they made sure their references weren’t too obvious.

As a storyteller, I’ve learned that inspiration can come from anywhere! When we first pitched Stranger Things to Netflix, we created a really ambitious trailer – about two and a half minutes long – that blended clips from a bunch of our favorite movies. We wanted to visually communicate the vibe and influences that were swirling around in our heads. Those films were huge for us growing up, truly part of who we are. But here’s the interesting thing: once we were actually writing the episodes, we rarely talked about those movies directly. We found that focusing too much on references would just create a confusing mess. Instead, we let the characters and the story itself lead the way – that’s where the real magic happened.

The team initially aimed for a vintage look by minimizing special effects, but they soon realized it was more challenging than they expected.

Originally, we wanted to rely entirely on practical effects, but we quickly learned how challenging that would be. We really gained a new appreciation for the teams who created films like The Thing and Alien. Practical effects take a lot of time and preparation. We were writing scripts fast, but didn’t have the months needed to properly prepare everything. By the time we got to set, a lot of the cool, old-school ideas just weren’t feasible because we simply didn’t have the time.

The creators, the Duffer brothers, originally planned for ‘Stranger Things’ to last five seasons. According to Netflix executive Matthew Thunell, many of their ideas from 2015 are finally coming to fruition as the series nears its conclusion. ‘Variety’ magazine reported that each episode of season four cost around $30 million to produce.

Although the creators of Stranger Things, the Duffer brothers, know how the show will eventually end, they aren’t finished exploring the story and its mysterious world, the Upside Down.

In an interview with Variety, the creators revealed they have a spin-off idea they’re really enthusiastic about, though it’s still in the very early stages – they haven’t even shared the concept yet. They did admit that Finn Wolfhard had correctly guessed the show’s premise, which they described as ‘very, very different.’ They emphasized that Finn is the only one outside of the core team who knows about it.

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2025-11-07 16:49