Stranger Things star shares real reason they've been out of limelight for five years: 'I'm living my truth'

Millie Bobby Brown, Gaten Matarazzo, Finn Wolfhard, and Winona Ryder are just some of the fan-favourites returning to Stranger Things for its fifth and final season.

However, the fantasy-drama series has seen many a character come and go over the years (quite often thanks to the demogorgan, the mind flayer, or some other needlessly terrifying creature); but when they exit the show and subsequently become household names, we don't expect to quite literally never see them again.

In fact, Dacre Montgomery, who played heart throb lifeguard, Billy Hargrove, has exited the limelight for the last five years, and he's finally spoken out about his decision to live a more low-key life.

The 30-year-old starred in Stranger Things 2 & 3, leaving in 2016, and since the show, has only starred in a small number of projects, including Elvis and Spider & Jessie.

Netflix

His Hollywood departure was completely on purpose (this year being marked by a return in ghost story, Went Up The Hill), in a bid to regain a sense of normalcy before continuing doing what he loves.

“Traditional Hollywood stars existed because there was mystery,” Dacre recently told The Australian, per the Daily Mail. “Social media has done away with that. That’s a large part of why I dropped off the map for the last five years.”

Unfortunately, he won't be back for the final season of the Netflix show, which wraps up in December.

He added, “I’m not trying to compete with anyone else, I’m living my truth and hopefully being able to pay the rent while I'm doing it."

“I’ve given a piece of myself to every role I’ve played and that’s largely why I’ve taken time off,” he continued. “Lately, there’s been a lot of personal reflection about what I want in my career. I’m trying to gain a bit more control over where and what I’m working on.”

Here's to having more boundaries - and we can't wait to see Dacre back on our screens. Just hopefully not being sacrificed to a monster this time.

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