Gaten Matarazzo is recalling one of the most “upsetting” fan encounters he had at a young age.
The Stranger Things star appeared on the Inside of Youpodcast where he revealed that an adult fan of his show had a crush on him when he was just 13.
“I did one very recently — and this is not very funny, but the reactions around it were quite funny — where this woman in her 40s said straight up, ‘I’ve had a crush on you since you were 13,'” Matarazzo said of the encounter.
“And I was like, ‘That’s upsetting.’ I’m sure she just meant, ‘Aw, this kid’s cute.’ But then she doubled down,” he continued.
The woman said that she was “aware of the age difference.” However, the woman’s daughter could not believe what her mother said and was disgusted by it.
“And her daughter was with her, and her daughter goes, ‘Mom, what the f–k?’ I swear to God,” Matarazzo revealed.
The actor is now 21, but shared that he has had other awkward fan interactions where he has experienced “a few butt grabs for sure.”
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Production has begun on season 5 of Stranger Things and Matarazzo spoke about the show and its final season as well.
“With this show it is quite clear and I am very well aware — and would like my professional team — to understand that I am very OK with ‘Stranger Things’ being very likely the biggest thing I will ever do. And it will most likely be the thing I am remembered for even if I consistently work after this,” he said.
“And I am so cool with that as long as it facilitates happiness going forward, security and more work going forward. What more could I ask for? I don’t want to maintain a sense of relevance at this point when it isn’t even something I particularly enjoy that much,” Matarazzo added.
