A Stranger Things Star Nearly Retired Before They Joined The Netflix Series

"Stranger Things" is gearing up for its fifth and final season (check out our recap here and read up on some game-changing theories before the new episodes debut), and the leadup has had all the glitz and glamor of premieres to make it especially starry. But one star had an especially surprising story to share about how she almost retired before she ultimately took the job in "Stranger Things." Linda Hamilton, famous for starring in the "Terminator" series as Sarah Connor, has a role as Dr. Kay in Season 5 — but it almost didn't happen.

"I had started to talk to my agent actually right before this about retirement," Hamilton reminisced to Variety (via X). "I was having a terrible hip issue for a few years and I was like, 'I can't guarantee that I'm going to be at my best.' And if I can't do that, then I don't want to be in front of [the] camera." But Matt and Ross Duffer, the creators of "Stranger Things," asked her through her agent if she would be on the show, and her agent immediately said yes. "He didn't even check with me!" Hamilton said.

So Hamilton decided to put retirement on hold and she's all the better for it. "I get to do work now the way that I always wanted to work, [in terms of] time," she told People in August 2025. "I'm not raising children, and I'm not cheating them if I sit with my script all day long. And I have to say, I'm enjoying it so much."

According to the Duffer Brothers, Linda Hamilton's Dr. Kay is the replacement to Matthew Modine's Dr. Martin Brenner, who died in Season 4. She is the leader of the government's team that's investigating the Upside Down. "When Carmen Cuba, our casting director, suggested Linda, we got really excited because she's very, very different from Modine," Ross Duffer told Entertainment Weekly. "She's equally intimidating and intelligent, but she can fight. If it comes down to it, she can shoot a gun, she can get in a fist fight, she can kick your ass."

Although Hamilton may be scary on the show, she couldn't be happier with her role in "Stranger Things" in real life — especially because she was a fan of the show before she joined the cast. "I've watched every season with relish. I just love it," she told Us Weekly. Although she won't be watching Stranger Things season 5 because seeing herself would take her out of the show, ultimately she was thrilled to get the call that the Duffer Brothers wanted her. "I literally felt like I was an actress getting my first meaningful part," she told The Hollywood Reporter. "I think that's going to give me another 15 minutes with a new audience, which is cool." You can see Hamilton in action when "Stranger Things" Season 5 premieres with its first four episodes on November 26.