As Stranger Things Season 5 approaches on Netflix, fans were disappointed by Eduardo Franco’s absence — but the actor recently stunned everyone with his transformed, chiseled physique while preparing for a new film role
On his Instagram, alongside s10training, Franco posted a video showing off his weight loss and new abs as he has been training hard in the gym.
The training facility captioned the post, “3 months of hard work, discipline, and S10 got @dumbuardo lean and mean for his Movie Role.”
Franco explains in the video that once he learned he got the movie role, he read the script. His character’s first opening scene is a shirtless one, and the actor soon decided he needed to get in shape.
“And I said, ‘Okay, well, I’m taking it upon myself. I’d like to look at lean as possible for that scene,'” he said while revealing he never had any prior strength training experience.
For Stranger Things fans, Franco’s transformation is a drastic one compared to his role in Season 4 of the series. Franco played the role of pizza delivery guy Argyle, known for his comedic charm, colorful outfits, and smoking habits.
“WAIT, THAT’S HIM??? IS THIS AI OR?? ( it kinda really looks an AI lol),” said one fan on X.
Another added, “He randomly popped up in me feed too and i was like ohh he looks familar and then it hit meeeee….”
Other shared comical gifs to share their surprise over Franco’s new physique, with one fan saying, “Maybe that’s why they didn’t cast him again as he looks so different — or maybe he just didn’t want to come back lol.”
When the fifth season of Stranger Things was announced, many noted Franco’s absence from the returning cast list. Franco hasn’t publicly explained his reasoning. It may be due to this upcoming movie role, as he said in the video, he got the part in July.
Looking at his upcoming projects, Franco is set to appear in Focker-in-Law, the third installment in the Meet the Parents franchise. His role in the movie is unclear, as it’s his most recent and only big-screen work.
This story was originally reported by Parade on Nov 11, 2025, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source au.lifestyle.yahoo.com ’
