Karen Wheeler Actor In Stranger Things Says She's Been Typecast In Roles For Years

Stranger Things star Cara Buono has said that she was typecast for years before breaking out into new roles. 

The 48-year-old actor has portrayed Mike, Nancy and Holly’s mum Karen Wheeler in the hit sci-fi horror show since it first arrived on Netflix. 

In a new conversation with Zoom TV’s SpeakEasy series, Buono – who previously played mob wife Kelli Lombardo Moltisanti in The Sopranos and Dr. Faye Miller in Mad Men – delved into her acting career. 

When asked if it was a challenge to not be ‘put in a box’ when going for roles, she replied: “I've always been pretty fortunate to have played a lot of different characters. 

“A lot of times, people will say they never recognise me because I think if I even just have my natural colour hair, people will be about this far away from me and not recognise me from seeing my work on Mad Men or Stranger Things. 

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“So I don't feel like I've had to be too worried about, you know, being put in a box for anything yet.”

But when asked about if this happened at the start of her acting profession, she said: “It’s funny, I grew up in the Bronx in New York City. 

“At the time, I had a very heavy Bronx accent, which I love. And I was maybe typecast as your typical New York City or, you know, Italian kind of character for a while. 

“And this served me when I was on The Sopranos, but then it was so very funny because as I've transformed into other roles, people have a hard time believing that I can do that character now.”

There’s no denying Buono has stepped away from those associations now, having proved herself in a wide variety of shows over the years, including her turn as Mike’s strict yet loving mother. 

Although some fans theorised that Mrs Wheeler might become one of Vecna’s victims in the latest finale, she survived and we can expect her return in the fifth and final season.

Speaking of which, the show's creators, the Duffer brothers, have left fans reeling for more after the climactic ending, and we have lots of questions that demand answers. 

Why could Eleven not reach Max? What happened to Vecna? How is Will still connected to the Upside Down?

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Fortunately, David Harbour, who plays Officer Jim Hopper in the show, has offered us a flickering Christmas light at the end of the tunnel, suggesting that season five could begin filming next year. 

In an interview with GQ, Harbour said “I think we’ll [shoot] next year. They’re finishing writing it this year, and they need to prep and stuff, so hopefully it’ll be this year... So it’d probably come out mid-2024, based on our track record.”

This was backed by the Duffer brothers when they told Collider: “We're going to take a little vacation in July. And then we're going to come back. 

“I know that the writer's room is going to start in that first week of August.” 

Until then, all episodes of Stranger Things are available to watch on Netflix now.