Background and career
Gaetano John "Gaten" Matarazzo III ( GAY-tən MAT-ə-RAZ-oh, Italian: [ɡaeˈtaːno mataˈrattso]; born September 8, 2002) is an American actor. He began his career on the Broadway stage as Benjamin in Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (2011–12), followed by Gavroche in Les Misérables (2014–15). Matarazzo gained international recognition for playing Dustin Henderson in the Netflix science-fiction-horror drama series Stranger Things (2016–2025). He also hosted the Netflix show Prank Encounters (2019–2021). In 2022, he co-starred in the coming-of-age comedy film Honor Society and voiced Boris the Dragon on the animated fantasy comedy film My Father's Dragon. In 2025, he starred in the animated film Animal Farm, in which he voiced the character Lucky. In 2026, he starred in and was the executive producer for the stoner comedy Pizza Movie.
Gaetano John Matarazzo III was born on September 8, 2002, in New London, Connecticut, to Heather and Gaetano John Matarazzo Jr., and was raised in Little Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey. His grandfather is of Italian descent from Avellino. Matarazzo was born with cleidocranial dysplasia (CCD). He has an older sister, Sabrina, and a younger brother, Carmen. Matarazzo pursued vocal training at Starlight Performing Arts Center in New Jersey. In 2011, he competed and won third place with his vocal solo titled "Ben" at the Starpower Talent Competition Nationals in Uncasville, Connecticut. He graduated from Pinelands Regional High School in 2020.
Matarazzo‘s first professional credit was in the Broadway musical Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, for which he was cast as a replacement in 2011. Following the production, he took part in a special "Cast of 2032" professional youth performance of Godspell at Circle in the Square Theatre in 2012. In 2013, he joined the Les Misérables 25th Anniversary Tour in the United States in the role of Gavroche; the following year, he played the same role in the Tony-nominated 2014 Broadway revival of the musical. In May 2022, it was announced that Matarazzo would return to Broadway, joining the final cast of the musical Dear Evan Hansen as Jared Kleinman. He starred in the Paramount+ film Honor Society with Angourie Rice, which was released on July 29, 2022. He voiced Boris the dragon in Cartoon Saloon's film adaptation of Ruth Stiles Gannett's My Father's Dragon novel series. It was announced in December 2022 that Matarazzo would be returning to Broadway as Toby Ragg in Thomas Kail's revival of Sondheim and Wheeler's Sweeney Todd, alongside Josh Groban, Annaleigh Ashford and Jordan Fisher. On October 8, 2026, Matarazzo began starring as the character Mark Cohen in a revival of RENT showcased at the Tom Stoppard Theatre in London's West End. The show is set to run until March 27, 2027.
Matarazzo made his screen acting debut in a 2015 episode of The Blacklist. After he was cast as Dustin Henderson in Stranger Things, the character's background was modified to have CCD as well. The show's first season premiered in July 2016 to critical acclaim. Matarazzo initially auditioned for the role of Mike Wheeler, another key character in the series, but was instead cast as Dustin Henderson. Over the next several years, Matarazzo also appeared in music videos and various reality and competition shows. On May 11, 2018, it was announced that he was cast in the animated film Hump.
In June 2025, Matarazzo joined the cast of BriTANIcK’s stoner-comedy Pizza Movie that premiered on Hulu on April 3, 2026. He was also credited as the executive producer on the film.
Matarazzo began hosting the Netflix hidden camera series Prank Encounters in 2019; he also served as an executive producer. That year, he also appeared in the Hollywood Bowl production of Into the Woods. He provided the voice of Bubba in The Angry Birds Movie 2.
