What Happened to One Key Stranger Things Character We’ve Not Seen in 4 Years Finally Explained

Stranger Things boasts a very large ensemble cast that seemingly grew each season, giving fans a plethora of characters to fall in love with. In some ways, this was one of the show’s strength, as there was no shortage of entertaining pairings that struck a chord with viewers. Of course, a massive cast has its fair share of downsides as well. With only so much real estate to go around, the reality is that there isn’t going to be enough screen time to give every character their just due. As Season 5 built to the series’ endgame and the final fight against Vecna, there wasn’t room for Suzie Bingham, a supporting character who left an impression on viewers across a couple of seasons.

Now, Stranger Things star Gaten Matarazzo has shared his explanation for what became of Dustin’s girlfriend. Speaking with Business Insider, Matarazzo shared that he didn’t discuss the matter with the Duffer brothers, but he has his own theory. “I think, unfortunately, what can be assumed is that in Dustin’s yearlong unhealthy grieving process — I mean, if he’s cutting out the friends that are day-to-day spending time with him, you can imagine he probably cut out a long-distance relationship,” he said. “I would like to think he did so nicely. I don’t think he did so nicely, because he wasn’t very nice at that point in his life.”

Matarazzo continued, “Or maybe she was sick of his s***. Maybe she was just like, ‘I’m not dealing with this.’ And that would be very tremendously fair of her. So I can imagine she was like, ‘I don’t have time for any of this.’ So I like to think she probably broke up with him.

Suzie’s Absence In Stranger Things Season 5 Highlights How Much Dustin Has Changed

When Stranger Things Season 5 picks up, Dustin is a far cry from the sweet, upbeat kid fans fell in love with during the earlier seasons. Still grieving over Eddie’s death, Dustin isn’t in a great place emotionally. He distances himself from his friends and goes out of his way to antagonize high school bullies, provoking them into beating him up. At times, it’s very sad and difficult to watch, especially when it becomes clear Dustin is acting the way he is out of fear of losing others who are close to him (his tearful plea to Steve is a Season 5 highlight). Matarazzo’s right in saying that if Dustin was being so isolated amongst his friends in Hawkins, it’s unlikely he had the interest or energy to maintain a long-distance romantic relationship.

By not even mentioning Suzie at all in Season 5, the Stranger Things creative team was essentially confirming that she was no longer in the picture, helping establish more of the foundation for Dustin’s personal arc. It arguably doesn’t really matter who initiated the breakup or what was said between them, viewers can tell just from the context of Dustin’s behavior that the couple didn’t have a happy ending, and they can fill in the blanks themselves. Frankly, if Dustin and Suzie were still together at the beginning of Season 5, something would have felt off. It’d be jarring to see Dustin push his childhood friends away while continuing his romance with Suzie. The way it plays out allows for an emotionally satisfying journey for Dustin, as he’s able to reconcile with those closest to him after a trying time. For that to land with the desired impact, Dustin needed to be alone at the outset.

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Face It, Stranger Things’ Secret Finale Would Have Been a Disaster

Dustin’s individual arc aside, it’s hard to see how Suzie would fit into the Stranger Things Season 5 story. Suzie lives in Salt Lake City, and Season 5 primarily takes place in Hawkins, the Upside Down, and Henry Creel’s mind. It made sense for Suzie to appear in Season 4, when a group of the main characters were situated on the West coast — much closer to Utah. Especially with everything that Season 5 had on its plate, trying to find a place for Suzie amidst everything else could have come across as contrived. It undoubtedly would have been fun to see Suzie again, as the character was responsible for some standout moments herself (the NeverEnding Story sequence), but it ultimately wasn’t necessary for her to be part of the finale.

Though Stranger Things is now over, perhaps fans will get a definitive, canonical explanation for Suzie’s absence at some point. The franchise is expanding with spinoff projects, including the animated series Stranger Things: Tales From ’85, which features the main characters from the show. The odds of seeing Suzie in live-action again are low, but maybe something like Tales From ’85 could help fill in the gaps. At the same time, not everything needs an absolute explanation. Some things are better left to the imagination.

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