Netflix’s Stranger Things is coming to a close with Season 5, and star David Harbour is looking forward to the series ending. Speaking with his former Marvel Cinematic Universe co-star Scarlett Johansson in a piece for Interview Magazine, the actor shared his thoughts on his Stranger Things experience. Recalling conversations he had with friends of his who did TV, Harbour thought at one point he would never tire of playing Jim Hopper on the streaming hit. However, years later, he has a different perspective on things and is ready to move on. After a decade of being on the show, he feels it’s run its course in terms of storytelling.
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“When I started I loved it so much,” Harbour said. “Buddies of mine who’d done TV shows for many years said, ‘By Season 3 or 4 you’ll be running.’ And I was like, ‘Never! I love all these guys so much.’ And then you get to a certain point where you’re like, ‘How much more story is there?’ You’re having to play a lot of the same beat, and there’s a feeling where you’re like, ‘I want to take a risk. I want to do something that people haven’t seen me do before.’ So yeah, after 10 years, it’s like, ‘Okay.’”
Harbour is one of many Stranger Things cast members who has appeared in all five seasons. It seemed like his Hopper died at the end of Season 3, but the character was brought back. Across the first four seasons, Harbour starred in 34 Stranger Things episodes. Hopper is arguably the actor’s signature role; he’s earned two Emmy nominations for his portrayal.
Stranger Things Season 5 will premiere on Netflix later this year. The episodes are being split up into three separate volumes that will release on major holidays. The first batch arrives on November 26th (the day before Thanksgiving). Subsequent volumes hit the streaming service on Christmas and New Year’s Eve.
Harbour’s comments illustrate the complex relationship actors have with long-running franchise roles. On one hand, being a part of something as successful as Stranger Things is what most actors dream about. Not only does that launch careers into a different stratosphere (opening the door for other intriguing opportunities), it gives actors a sense of security they can fall back on. Elizabeth Olsen highlighted how playing Scarlet Witch in the MCU gave her the leeway to pursue smaller, more character-driven films in between since she knew the next Marvel paycheck was right around the corner. However, acting is a creative profession, and performers enjoy taking on the challenge of pushing themselves by trying different things. Playing the same character over and over again can be quite limiting, especially when there isn’t much narrative ground left to explore. The role loses some of the novelty it had earlier.
Since Stranger Things debuted in 2016, Harbour has been able to lend his talents to a variety of projects across different genres — Black Widow, Violent Night, No Sudden Move, etc. — but it’s easy to see where he’s coming from. Stranger Things is a massive production that’s very time-consuming (even for a supporting player like Harbour’s Hopper), and he’s ready to be free of that obligation so he can pursue other creative endeavors. Clearly, Harbour is not averse to taking on recurring parts in a large franchise (his Red Guardian will be seen in Avengers: Doomsday), but he’s mindful of how long he should stay in one sandbox before moving on. It’ll be exciting to see what other kinds of projects he’s able to take on now that Stranger Things is complete.
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Images Courtesy of Miramax Films and the Weinstein Company
