Weezer’s chintzy The Teal Album, a vapid covers collection born out of their “Africa” success, isn’t good for much, but it did give us the gift that is Finn Wolfhard with Bon Jovi hair, and for that we’re eternally grateful. The Stranger Things breakout stars in the new video for Weezer’s riff on a-ha’s “Take On Me,” in which he plays an angsty, teenage version of the band’s Rivers Cuomo.
Joining Wolfhard is the young actor’s own band, Calpurnia, whose debut EP, Scout, dropped last year. Together, the foursome have a blast lip-syncing the track as the rotoscoping illustration techniques that define a-ha’s original video sketch in and out if the frame.
Fun fact: This isn’t Wolfhard’s first music video. As a wee tyke, he flexed an axe in PUP’s “Sleep In The Heat” visual. Another fun fact: The above clip takes place in 1985, the same year as Stranger Things’ upcoming third season. Fingers crossed that Mike Wheeler is also going through a Norwegian pop phase. We’re not ready to part with that hair.
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I like this better than the original. (I am not over fond of the original.)
HERESY!!
I’ll never like any version of this song.
Did they kill a raccoon and glue it to his head. That is some bad wig work right there
A raccoon? What kind of budget do you think they had for this?
Ten years from now when the Stranger Things is in the distant past and these kids are all grown up, we are gonna get a bunch of behind the scenes interviews where we find out Finn Wolfhard was a giant asshole aren’t we? Like maybe the first season he was cool but after he became the breakout star he started treating everyone else like garbage? Just get this feeling about the kid.
Could be. I find it hard to hold childhood behavior against people, though, because they’re children. If he actually turns out to be an asshole and is still being an asshole in ten years, we can talk.
I think the opposite is true. A lot of people who have worked with Finn said how nice and humble he is. David Harbour said Finn was his favourite actor to work with and that he really surprised him in their scenes together for season 3. Finn is more private than the other kids in the ST cast but that doesn’t mean he’s an asshole.
And I trust David Harbour to be the kind of man to punch a kid in the face if that kid is a dick.
I’d think just a look from the guy would be sufficient.
The kid I worry about the most in the group is Millie Bobby Brown, especially since David Harbour has expressed that himself, when considering her overwhelming breakout status. I know I’m really pulling for these kids. Adulthood stardom is hard enough, but childhood stardom is fraught with danger.
She already seems to be embracing her fame as a gateway to political/social advocacy, apparently not realizing we already have an overabundance of celebrity pundits.
There’s always something special about your celebrity crush’s first sexual harassment allegation.
Nah. Unfortunately it’s likely to be poor MBB with her horrifying stage-parents who is going to be the subject of the post-Strange Things stories.
Oh don’t worry, Drake will groom her right outta there.
I think he’s in greater danger of being typecast as “that 80s kid.”
I thought the breakout stars were Millie Bobby Brown and Gaten Matarazzo?
Millie is but have we seen Gaten in anything other then Strange Things. Wolfhard seems to be getting movie deals
Gaten appears in a lot of commercials. Maybe that’s not a good barometer of success. lol
Why aren’t the evil cop guys bashing them with nightsticks like in the original?
This camcorder is out of place and out of time. The period is 1985, but this digital camcorder with flip-out LCD screen didn’t exist until the mid-90s. It’s all about the details, guys!
Good catch. In 85 you would be using one of those big ass, over the shoulder recorders.
Yup, the standard mass market camcorder in the 80s is something like this. Most of ‘em recorded on VHS/Beta/Video8.
That kid not holding the camera really looks like a young Helen Hunt.
I used to make films with my high school chums back in the day using that camera. Of course I’m 29 and “back in the day” was 2007, because my dad was a cheap bastard who picked up that camera for $10 at garage sale.
Dammit, Rivers!!!
I love it when a band covers a song and gives it their own, unique twist.This isn’t one of those times.
This is superfluous to my musical needs.
I’m still coming off of Cybertronic Spree’s cover of Lisa Lougheed’s ‘Run With Us’.This was a serviceable cover but nothing new brought to the table.
Cybertronic Spree is a band that knows how to OWN a cover song. There’s a lot more going on beneath the veneer of Transformers cosplay.
Yeah, it’s pretty impressive that they can play with costumes on, especially gloves with cardboard digits.
I like the one guys who’s like, “Fuck that! I’ll be Sparkplug Witwicky.”
I did not know that existed and my life is better for it. I thank you, good sir!
Thank Dan Neilan of AV Club News who also brought them to my attention. They’re my new favorite ‘thing’. I hope they come to Atlanta, at least for Dragon Con this year. Would love to see them live.They’ve been around since like 2013 or so. I can’t believe I’m just finding out about them now. Granted, they hail from Toronto.
I think they’ve already played Atlanta this year (New Years?). They’ll be in Pensacola for Pensacon.
Damn, I wish I knew about them earlier. My New Year was pretty uneventful.
Wasn’t that the theme from The Raccoons? This was a serviceable cover but nothing new brought to the table.I’m finding that with all the covers I’ve heard off this album so far. I’m coming to realize that the only thing worse than a terrible cover is a terribly BORING cover.
Yup, that was the ending theme from The Raccoons but also had a popular music video in Canada.Cybertronic Spree has been helping to rebuild the childhood Hollywood has all but destroyed.
If we’re going to bring up Finn Wolfhard’s earlier music video appearances, this isn’t even the first music video where he’s played a young version of the band’s lead singer. He was the young version of Dan Avidan in Ninja Sex Party’s video for “Danny Don’t You Know” just last year.
That was horrible, and missed every mark.
The superior Finn Wolfhard music video:
The only interesting thing about this video is the apparent Matt Sharp callback.
Again, Weezer’s versions of ‘80s pop hits are catchy and listenable but completely fail to justify their existence compared to the superior and very similar originals.
That was a weird place to go with the “hey, he was in a music video before, too” lead-in. He literally had a starring role in a Ninja Sex Party video and a PUP video is your go-to?
A BIT DISAPPOINTED HE DID NOT NAIL THAT HIGH NOTE ON THE CHORUS. WELL-FINESSED, BUT STILL…
Rivers couldn’t’ hit a high note even if his Quiet Riot records were threatened by wildfire.
Are we all really ignoring the amazing video for Danny Don’t You Know that also starred Finn Wolfhard??
What we need is Finn Wolfhard’s band covering “Take On Me”.