Stranger Things' actor's rare condition was written into story as he grew up on Netflix show

The final instalment of Stranger Things is on its way pretty soon, and it has been a very long road since the popular Netflix show first hit our screens.

You'd have to go all the way back to July 2016 to reach the starting point of this long journey, but the end is in sight as the first four episodes of the final season are set to release on 26 November.

However, you'll have to wait until Christmas Day for the next three episodes, and then the finale drops on New Year's Eve, so even if new episodes are releasing next week, it's not going to properly wrap up until the very end of 2025.

Which characters will die and who will make it out alive? Those are secrets Netflix is keeping under very tight wraps as they'll be keen not to have Stranger Things spoiled, though fans are naturally worried that their faves aren't making it through the whole show.

Before the presumptive carnage commences, just enjoy some trivia about the show, like how they included something about actor Gaten Matarazzo in his character.

Matarazzo, who plays young (though not so young these days, he's 23) schoolkid Dustin Henderson, has a condition called 'cleidocranial dysplasia', which affects a person's bone and tooth development.

He'd said in the past that the condition had been an impediment to him getting roles, naming it as 'one of the biggest reasons' why he'd not got some parts he'd gone for.

However, he'd explained what it was during his Stranger Things audition and when he got the part they ended up rolling it into the character of Dustin, who spoke about it on screen during the first season where he told bullies his teeth were still 'coming in'.

Of course they asked him whether or not he was cool with that, with the character being bullied for it in the show.

They're back for one final series (Sebastian Reuter/Getty Images for Netflix)

“Once I got the part, they said they’re gonna incorporate that and use it in a realistic way," he explained.

"They asked me if it was okay if the kids in the show had bullied me because of it. I said it’s totally cool. It’s realistic.”

Matarazzo had once explained that cleidocranial dysplasia meant he was 'born without collarbones'.

In 2016 he'd said: "It's a condition where you are born without your collarbones; I don't have any. It affects your facial growth, your skull growth, it affects your teeth. That's why I don't have any - these are fake - I have teeth but they're all baby teeth.

"I just want to raise awareness for it and let people know that it's not something that you should be afraid of showing."