Eduardo Franco Says He Won’t Be Returning For The Final Season Of Stranger Things

It's a bit of a letdown for "Stranger Things" enthusiasts, but it appears Eduardo Franco won't be making a comeback in the series. 

The buzz around the final season's commencement was ignited when the official Instagram account for "Stranger Things" posted a photo of the cast, announcing the start of production for season five.

The caption read with emergency, 

"THIS IS A CODE RED," the post's caption began.

"STRANGER THINGS 5 production has officially begun!!!"

Credit: Netflix

The photo featured key actors like Millie Bobby Brown, Joe Keery, Maya Hawke, and David Harbour, but sharp-eyed fans noticed Eduardo Franco's absence.

Franco, who won hearts in season four as Jonathan Byer's best buddy Argyle, the lovable pizza delivery character, won't be returning for the show's final run, despite his character's growing popularity. 

This news was discussed on the Steve Varley Show, where Varley pointed out Franco's absence in the cast photo, sparking fan speculation about his role in the upcoming season.

Varley, after discussing Franco's role in Hulu's "Self Reliance," probed about "Stranger Things" season five, asking, 

"You don’t have to answer this, but fans kind of went to a panic with the cast photo of day one of Stranger Things season five..."

A pre-production photo of the Stranger Things cast was recently shared. Credit: Atsushi Nishijima/Netflix

"Now they’re thinking you’re not in the season. Can you give us hopes that you are? And can you say anything if not?"

Franco responded, seemingly touched by the fans' concern, "It’s nice to hear that there’s, there’s some sort of, you know, concern or something, you know what I mean?" 

However, he confirmed the suspicions by saying, "But I never a got a phone call, so I think that's it."

Varley held onto hope that Franco might yet return as Argyle, but Franco himself seemed less optimistic about it.

The "Stranger Things" fan community has expressed their disappointment over this revelation. 

Eduardo Franco played Argyle in Stranger Things. Credit: Netflix

One fan expressed surprise: "Wow that’s actually shocking if he’s not in the Stranger Things last season." 

Another shared their frustration more bluntly: "I'm p*ssed."

Concerns were raised about Argyle's character arc, with one fan commenting, "What are the duffers going to do? Argyle just disappears? They send him back to Cali but he knows about everything that's happening? Give him a proper ending man, Argyle deserves that." 

Another fan hoped that the show's writers would "at least get him in an episode or two to actually write him off properly."

Watch the interview here: