Maya Hawke says Stranger Things fans at her gigs left her ‘almost depressed’

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Actor Maya Hawke says Stranger Things fans attending her live gigs left her “almost depressed”.

The 25-year-old, who is the daughter of Pulp Fiction actor Uma Thurman and Dead Poets Society star Ethan Hawke, made her breakthrough as Robin Buckley in the record-breaking Netflix series.

The sci-fi show follows a group of friends as they band together to beat the monstrous Demogorgon in parallel universe, The Upside Down.

Hawke, who has made a candid “nepo” admission about her role in Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, made her transition to music in the same year, releasing “To Love a Boy” and “Open” in 2019. In a new interview to promote her third album, Chaos Angel, the Asteroid City star opened up about the impact of the show’s fame, and its cult following, on her music career.

“I was almost depressed about it,” she told The Times, reflecting on the prevalence of Stranger Things fans at her gigs. Hawke recalls assuming people attended due to her association with the show.

“Like, I’m glad there are people here, but I guess they don’t care about the music.”

However, Hawke says she soon realised there was genuine overlap between those who were interested in the show and those who related to her music.

It’s an experience she said her Stranger Things co-stars Joe Keery (Steve Harrington) and Finn Wolfhard (Mike Wheeler) have been through, as they released music shortly after their breakthrough roles.

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Last month, Keery was forced to address rumours of a Taylor Swift collaboration, after they were both seen in a New York studio at the same time.

Keery, who releases his music under the name Djo, put speculation around a possible collaboration to rest.

“I just happened to be there the day that she was there,” he said on The Spout Podcast.

Hawke, also addressed her “nepo-baby” background, admitting that she had secured roles on legendary director Quentin Tarantino’s movie Once Upon A Time... In Hollywood because of her connections.

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“I’ve been wildly made fun of for this clip when I said, on the red carpet, that I auditioned,” she said, although she confirmed she did make an audition tape.

“I never meant to imply that I didn’t get the part for nepotistic reasons — I think I totally did”.

The actor who has recently referred to her family as the “indie Kardashians” added that she is “comfortable” with not deserving the life that she leads.

“‘Deserves’ is a complicated word,” she said. “There are so many people who deserve to have this kind of life who don’t, but I think I’m comfortable with not deserving it and doing it anyway. And I know that my not doing it wouldn’t help anyone.”