Dennis Hopper played the lead role in Stranger Things.
Dennis Lee Hopper ( May 17 , 1936 -- May 29 , 2010 ) was an American actor , filmmaker , photographer and artist . Stranger Things . The series was released on Netflix on July 15 , 2016 . On August 31 , 2016 , Netflix renewed the series for a second season of nine episodes , which is set to be released on October 31 , 2017 .