‘Stranger Things 2’: What’s The Story On Eleven’s New ‘Do?

Stranger Things 2 will feature plenty of familiar faces, but one of the show’s key characters will debut an entirely new look. The kids from the Stranger Things 2 cast are featured on the cover of the upcoming issue of Entertainment Weekly, and fans may notice that one member of this squad has had a major hair transformation.

For Stranger Things 2, Millie Bobby Brown, who plays telekinetic heroine, Eleven, ditches her signature buzzcut to sport a mop of curly hair. The ‘do is clearly a wig, and it makes the show’s 12-year-old superstar look like a little bit like her co-star, Gaten Matarazzo (Dustin on the Netflix hit).

Eleven’s new hairdo is not a total shocker. Last fall, Stranger Things hairstylist Sarah Hindsgaul told Refinery 29 that the second season of the show would reflect the wild hairstyles of the mid-1980s.

“This year it is very different — we start stepping more into the ’80s, which is kind of amazing, visually,” the Stranger Things stylist said. “Last year was ’83 and this year is ’84, and they’re still in Hawkins, Indiana — but people are starting to realize there are perms and mullets, so we’re using a lot of wigs this year.”

While the new look may take some getting used to, the concept for Eleven’s original look came quickly, according to Stranger Things creators the Duffer Brothers. In an interview last year with Variety, Matt Duffer said it was challenging to find a child actress willing to shave her head, but Brown was game after being inspired by Charlize Theron’s Mad Max character, Furiosa.

“For some reason, we decided [Eleven] was going to emerge from the woods in this dirty hospital gown and her hair was going to be buzzed,” Matt Duffer told Variety.

“The trick was no little girls wanted to buzz their hair, it’s not something either them or their parents are into. Even with Millie, there was a lot of talk about it. They were hesitant because it was like, ‘Is this gonna cost her roles?’ Fortunately, it was the time that the Mad Max: Fury Road marketing was really ramping up. We showed Millie a picture of Charlize as Furiosa and said, ‘Does she not look bada**?’ She was like, ‘Yeah.’ We said, ‘You’re gonna look bada**, exactly like Charlize.’ She’s like, ‘OK, let’s do it.’ Thank God for Mad Max. We shaved it off within 10 minutes. Her dad ran out crying, but within a week her entire family all loved it.”

Last summer, Millie Bobby Brown posted a 2-minute video of her head shaving to Twitter. The Stranger Things star is seen with long brown hair tied into ponytails as the stylist starts chopping while Beyonce’s “Pretty Hurts” plays in the background.

While she put on a brave face for her career-changing haircut, the Stranger Things star told Indie Wire she was blindsided by the Duffers when they told her she’d have to buzz her hair.

“So I’m standing in the room with them, and Ross Duffer comes over to me and is just like, ‘Bzzzzzzzz’ on my head, and I’m like, ‘What’s that mean?'” the Stranger Things star revealed last July. “And Ross said, ‘Well, you’ve got to shave your head!'”

Brown also recounted the story of her fierce inspiration.

“They told me, ‘I want you to have the mind-frame of Charlize Theron in Mad Max,” she told IndieWire. “And we did this sort of split-screen of her and me, and the resemblance was amazing! I thought, ‘Wow, that’s such an amazing way to put it, you know?’ It was the best decision I’ve ever, ever made.”

In addition to her iconic buzzcut, Brown also wore a long blonde wig for part of the first season of Stranger Things.

Stranger Things 2 premieres on Halloween on Netflix. Take a look at the first trailer below.

[Featured Image by Theo Wargo/Getty Images for NBC]