- - Who Is Linnea Berthelsen? Meet the Actress Who Plays Kali in 'Stranger Things'

Whitney DanhauerDecember 28, 2025 at 2:43 AM

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When Stranger Things fans tune into Season 5, one familiar face popping up again is Kali Prasad, the powerful and divisive character played by Danish actress Linnea Berthelsen.

Kali, also known as Eight, was introduced in Season 2 in an episode that is still talked about today, and she has returned in the final season with a storyline that expands her role in the show’s mythology.

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Linnea Berthelsen’s Background

Berthelsen was born on July 13, 1993, in India and was raised in Denmark. She moved to England to study at the East 15 Acting School in London, where she trained in acting before building a screen career that includes shorts, independent projects, and television.

Berthelsen made her onscreen debut in 2014 and appeared in a string of short films before landing the role of Kali in Stranger Things.

The Character Behind Eight

In Stranger Things, Kali Prasad was introduced as one of the many children experimented on at Hawkins National Laboratory alongside Eleven. Like Eleven, she developed psychic abilities, but hers were unique. She specializes in creating powerful illusions capable of manipulating perception and hiding her presence. Fans often refer to her simply as Eight or Kali.

In Season 2, Kali’s storyline centered on her shared history with Eleven and her quest for revenge against those who wronged her at the lab. While her episode, titled “The Lost Sister,” was controversial among viewers, it remains an important piece of Eleven’s backstory and helped cement Kali as a memorable part of the Stranger Things universe.

NetflixReturning for Season 5: What’s Changed for Kali?

After her brief but impactful appearance in Season 2, Berthelsen’s Kali reemerged in Season 5, marking her first significant return in nearly eight years. Viewers first saw her again in Chapter Four Volume 1 and she returned in Volume 2 of the final season, where her role is more than just a cameo.

According to recent interviews, she even shaved her head on camera to capture the emotional and physical transformation of the character.

"I think for logistics reasons, it's my first take on the whole season. It was my first day of principal photography," Berthelsen told Entertainment Weekly, referring to shaving her head. "We had to do it in one take. I did it with [episode 5 director] Frank Darabont. I did not do it with Matt and Ross Duffer, so I also had to do it with somebody who I didn't know. I love [Darabont's] work. I love working with him, but there was all of these logistics and requests about, 'Is this something you would like to come and do?'"

Season 5 expanded Kali’s involvement in the battle against both governmental experiments and cosmic threats, including her warnings to Eleven about ongoing experiments that echo the cruelty of Hawkins Lab’s past.

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Why Fans Are Talking About Her Return

Kali’s reappearance in Stranger Things Season 5 has stirred discussion among viewers. Some were excited to see her arc explored more deeply after so many seasons, but others remembered the polarizing reaction to her original storyline in Season 2. Her return has sparked conversation about how her journey intersects with Eleven’s and the larger Hawkins saga.

With the series finale set to stream on December 31, audiences will soon get the full picture of how Kali’s path converges with the rest of the gang and what it all means for the end of the Stranger Things story.

This story was originally published by Parade on Dec 27, 2025, where it first appeared in the TV section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”