'Stranger Things': Lip gloss was secret ingredient to getting Billy to look so sweaty
It’s safe to say that the third season of Netflix’s “Stranger Things” is the most gruesome one yet, what with its inclusion of oozing monsters, animal guts and more nosebleeds than ever. On set, however, the grossest part of filming had nothing to do with gore.
It was probably all of that fake sweat.
Spoiler alert! The following contains plot details from Season 3 of "Stranger Things," so beware if you haven't seen it yet.
In the new episodes set over the summer of 1985, Hawkins bully Billy (Dacre Montgomery) has a summer job as a lifeguard at the community pool. He sweats a lot while out in the sun. And then he perspires to “Wow, you look sickly” levels once he becomes possessed by the Mind Flayer monster.
The shiny substance actually dripping down his skin in every frame?
“It’s actually lip gloss,” says Montgomery. “The head of the makeup department got a huge tub of lip gloss, and I’m constantly covered in it.”
Montgomery didn’t have a problem with the full-body glossing. He found it better than the alternative: Being repeatedly doused in water.
“We were shooting, and it was really cold,” he says. “(Gloss) is actually nice, because it keeps you looking sweaty all day every day, so you’re not constantly being sprayed."
Throughout Season 3, Billy also gains plenty of wounds, the result of several violent monster and human encounters. Montgomery says he spent “five hours every day in hair and makeup because there’s a lot of cumulative scratches and bruises that most of the viewers might not notice, but it’s important for continuity.”
And as for those monster encounters — in real life, Montgomery was acting opposite from, well, not much.
“Our big scary monster was a giant beach ball taped to a long pole,” series creators Matt and Ross Duffer said in an email. “The kids kept laughing at it, and we had to continually remind them to act scared!”
In fact, much of Season 3’s disgusting imagery, explosive rodents and melting humans were created with computer-generated imagery.
“The exploding rats were CGI, yes — as was most of our gross stuff this season,” say the Duffers. “The first season’s monster was mostly brought to life by a man in monster suit (with the help of lots of slime, of course!). With a larger budget, we can now create a larger variety of creatures. The possibilities are now endless — we’re limited only by our own imagination.”
And, perhaps, by lip gloss supply.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'Stranger Things': Secret ingredient to get actor looking so sweaty
