Gaten Matarazzo responds to Winona Ryder’s comments that Gen-Z are put off by long movies: “I’ve got to give my generation a bit more credit”

Stranger Things’ Gaten Matarazzo has responded to Winona Ryder’s comments that Gen Z viewers are put off by long films, arguing his generation deserves “more credit”.

• READ MORE: Gaten Matarazzo on the “satisfying, cathartic” end of ‘Stranger Things’

In August, Ryder, who plays Joyce Byers in the Netflix show, commented that she believes young people today are less interested in films than previous generations, saying: “Like, the first thing they say is, ‘How long is it?’”.

Now, Matarazzo, 22, who plays Dustin Henderson in the show, has responded to her sentiments, issuing a strong defence of his cohort, saying: “I’ve got to give my generation a bit more credit”.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, he added: “Just because there isn’t the ritual of going to the theater, it doesn’t necessarily mean that there aren’t people who are invested [in film].”

“I think that [my generation] are a lot more critical of the information and the entertainment that they obtain and absorb. It’s made for a more nuanced approach to how people watch movies, and I think it’s going to continue on an upward scale. People in my generation are going to be really excited about jumping in, and while it may not be as universal, I think the people that are invested are incredibly invested. They have so much research at their disposal, and they can watch every movie that’s ever been made if they want to.”

“But I do notice that the fun ritual experience of seeing stuff in the theater is fading,” he added. “There’s a few pockets here and there that are trying to keep it alive, and I would love to see people going to theaters more. I’ve been trying to do so myself, but Gen Z is a pretty creatively forward bunch. The industry is going to be just fine in their hands.”

In other news, Matarazzo suggested earlier in the year that the writers of Stranger Things should “kill more” of the show’s main characters to make “the stakes…much higher”.

The first look at the fifth and final season of the show was unveiled by Netflix in July, after filming on it began back in January.

Fans can expect eight episodes to wrap up the show’s story, with star Maya Hawke (Robin Buckley) recently teasing that they are “making, basically, eight movies”. “The episodes are very long,” she added.

Two of those episodes will be directed by The Shawshank Redemption’s Frank Darabont, who has broken his 11-year retirement to work on the show.

Matarazzo himself told NME recently that he believes fans will be very happy with the show’s denouement. “The way that the shows have been going, the seasons have been progressing, the way we go about this last one just seems like the ultimate plan that Matt [Duffer] and Ross [Duffer] have always had, and it feels like a really satisfying way to kind of put the button on it and seal it once and for all,” he said.

Matarazzo also recently starred in the four-part miniseries Lego Star Wars: Rebuild The Galaxy, which is streaming now on Disney+.

The post Gaten Matarazzo responds to Winona Ryder’s comments that Gen-Z are put off by long movies: “I’ve got to give my generation a bit more credit” appeared first on NME.