Holly Wheeler has a much bigger presence in the fifth and final season of Stranger Things than she ever did in previous seasons and a new actress is playing the role.
Rising star Nell Fisher has taken over the role from twin child actors Tinsley and Anniston Price, who appeared in the first four seasons.
The creators of the show have opened up about the decision to make Holly a more important character this time around.
Keep reading to find out more…
“As we just broke Season 5, we realized that Holly playing a larger role, that’s really when the season started to take shape. What we really wanted to do, and what that scene with her and Mike is talking about is, obviously our cast is older now, but we wanted to bring back the show full circle to Season 1,” Ross Duffer told Deadline. “And to really do that, we needed kids in there again, so it felt like the best way to do that was through Holly.”
Because of her increased presence in the series and the time in-between seasons, the producers needed to find a new actress to play the role. They also didn’t need twins sharing the role any longer because she’s now older.
Nell, who previously acted in Evil Dead Rise, has paid tribute to the performance of the Price twins.
“This kid. These girls. So lucky to take on this role. Annie. Tinsley. Nell. Holly,” she captioned an Instagram post in June 2025.
She added, “If you haven’t watched Stranger Things S1 for a while, it’s worth rewatching. It’s a beautiful season.”
How old is Holly? Nell is currently 14, which means she was probably between 12 and 13 while filming the season.
In the show, Holly was just three-years-old in season one. The fifth season takes place four years later, so she presumably is now 7, but it appears the series decided to age her up a bit.
Learn about the ages of all the other characters and actors.