Warning: this article contains spoilers for Stranger Things season 4, vol. 2.
Hopper actor David Harbour shares his reaction to the mind-blowing Stranger Things season 4 finale and the episode's major cliffhanger. The new season of Netflix's flagship series picks up eight months after season 3's battle of Starcourt Mall which saw the death of Max's brother, Billy, and seemingly Hopper as well. Season 4 reveals that Hawkins' fan-favorite police chief survived the explosion only to be captured by Soviet soldiers and sent to a prison camp in Kamchatka, Russia.
Stranger Things season 4 follows multiple plotlines as Joyce Byers teams up with Murray Bauman to head to Russia and bring Hopper back as he is forced to fight Demogorgons in a Russian gulag. Meanwhile, in Hawkins, a powerful being that resides in the Upside Down, Vecna, begins killing teenagers in gruesome ways. The primary plotline focuses on Dustin, Max, Lucas, Erica, Steve, Nancy, Robin, and Eddie as they investigate this mysterious threat. After a month of waiting, Stranger Things season 4 released its final two supersized episodes which saw multiple plotlines converge as Eleven helps the gang back in Hawkins win a momentary victory against Vecna, which comes at the cost of a few main characters and their beloved hometown of Hawkins.
As Stranger Things fans are still reeling from the final two episodes, David Harbour is sharing his own reaction in a recent interview with GQ. The Jim Hopper actor described the season 4's finale's major cliffhanger which saw Hawkins being engulfed by the Upside Down. This is expected to have monumental ramifications for season 5 which Harbour isn't even aware of at the current time. Read his full reaction below:
There’s like, huge rift earthquakes going through all of Indiana, one would assume. So I don’t know what the f*ck is gonna happen in season five now.
On the heels of season 4's shocking finale, even Harbour doesn't know what the major cliffhanger means for the upcoming fifth and final season. This is because the Duffer brothers haven't finished writing season 5 yet and seemingly haven't shared any story details with its stars quite yet. The only thing known for sure about Stranger Things season 5 is that it will feature a time jump, as the creators have confirmed as much. However, season 4's cliffhanger ending poses a lot of questions about how they can pull that off effectively.
The Duffer brothers have cited the actors' ages as the main reason for season 5's time jump, though such a plot device would effectively skip over Vecna and the Upside Down's infiltration of Hawkins and the immediate aftermath. This is perhaps why Harbour and audiences at large are so puzzled about what season 4's cliffhanger could mean for the fifth and final season. This presents the perfect opportunity for Stranger Things season 5 to continue surprising viewers with a final installment even more ambitious and action-packed than the recently released season 4.
Source: GQ