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Harbour calls Stranger Things 3 ending 'greatest episode we've ever shot'
Start investing in Kleenex stock because Stranger Things is about to flood the world with salty tears of emotion. Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, David Harbour (Chief Jim Hopper) gave the extremely impassioned finale of Season 3 (premiering on Netflix next week) the highest praise possible.
“[It's] the greatest episode we’ve ever shot,” said the actor, who is currently filming Marvel Studios' standalone Black Widow film alongside Scarlett Johansson. “It’s so emotionally powerful because you’re not expecting what happens to happen. I don’t think we’ve ever shot anything more moving.”
To get to that point, however, the Goonies-esque gang of Hawkins, Indiana will have to face off against an old threat (the Mind Flayer) in a very different form. Somehow, the evil — pretty much Lovecratian — entity got into our world again and is now wreaking havoc across town via Billy Hargrove (Dacre Montgomery) and a gooey tar pit monster.
“We closed the gate, but there is this intelligence out there — the spider-shadow monster — and it wants into this world,” Harbour continued. “It’s going to use a lot of different means to do that. He gets to really open his heart in a new way."
Having adopted Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) at the end of Stranger Things 2, Hopper will soon learn just how hard it can be raising a teenage daughter, especially one with a boyfriend and raging hormones. Having Eleven in his life helps repair the gaping hole left by the death of Hopper's biological daughter, a tragic event that led to the dissolution of his marriage. Hoping to patch that void up next, Jim's also exploring his relationship with Joyce Byers (Winona Ryder), who conveniently became single when a Demodog killed her boyfriend, Bob (Sean Astin).
"He’s sort of realizing the intimacy that is required with a woman his age is going to be difficult," he said.
As we said above, Eleven has a romance of her own, Mike Wheeler (Finn Wolfhard), but Hopper isn't all too keen on his new daughter, so recently a lab rat, getting frisky in the summer heat.
“Now that Eleven is no longer a secret, Mike and Eleven’s romance is in full swing — to the growing irritation of an overprotective Hopper,” Ross Duffer, who created the series with his brother, Matt, told EW. Another major couple this season are Lucas Sinclair (Caleb McLaughlin) and Max Mayfield (Sadie Sink).
“Lucas is still dating Max and now considers himself quite the ladies man,” added Ross. “When Mike has relationship problems with Eleven, Lucas provides ‘wise’ counsel…”
Sadly, that means Will Byers (Noah Schnapp), so looking forward to endless hours of D&D campaigns is left out as his friends go on dates. To quote a Huey Lewis song from the summer of 1985, "THAT'S THE POWER OF LOVE!"
Season 3 of Stranger Things will violently rip its way out an inter-dimensional portal to premiere on Netflix Thursday, July 4. No better way to celebrate our independence!
Pandora and Netflix are here to help us prepare with a special "mixtape" (aka a special radio channel) that exclusively plays musical hits from the summer of '85. The channel even has its own host, Casey Hawk, who will make you feel like you've been hurled back in time to the Reagan Era. Moreover, Pandora's release heavily hints that Casey will be one of the Mind Flayer's targets in the new episodes. You can access the mixtape right here and start jamming out to Survivor, Wham!, Prince, and more!
Raspberry beret sold separately.
