Stranger Things Actor Addresses AI Scene Speculation

An actor in the latest season of Stranger Things has spoken out amid speculation that scenes featuring a teenage version of lead character Joyce were made using AI technology.

In episode four of the Netflix show’s final series, we’re introduced to the character of Joyce – usually portrayed by Winona Ryder – as a high school student, putting on a production of the musical Oklahoma!.

Obviously, Stranger Things being Stranger Things, the plot had more relevance to the Upside Down and its sinister goings on than your typical jolly school play.

Since the award-winning series’ return last week, some fans had been speculating that the scenes featuring teenage Joyce must have been made using AI deepfake technology because of just how much she looked like Winona.

However, the actor who played Joyce in the flashbacks – known as Birdy – has now also publicly confirmed there was no AI at play, and she actually just looks a whole lot like the Beetlejuice star

Clearing things up, Birdy posted a still from the scene on her Instagram, simply writing: “Not AI Winona.”

Stranger Things devotees expressed their surprise in the comments, with one fan writing that they “genuinely thought they de-aged Winona somehow!!”, while another enthused: “Bruhhh you two are identical. I literally thought it was AI”.

It’s just as well, too, as Winona claimed in a recent interview with ELLE that she “loathes” AI.

She has also previously spoken about her fight to make sure Joyce was a well-rounded character in Stranger Things, and not just “the mum” of the story.

Fans of the sci-fi behemoth have already been poring over the first episodes of the final season to spot easter eggs that could spell out what becomes of Hawkins and the gang that inhabit it.

Netflix has staggered the release of remaining episodes, but after a three-year wait between seasons, people will be relieved to hear that they only have to wait a few weeks to see how it all pans out.