Stranger Things season 3 ended with a major shock as Hawkins’ intrepid police chief Jim Hopper was apparently killed while our heroes saved the world. Joyce Byers had to destroy the Russian “key” machine in order to close the gate to the Upside Down, but Hopper was caught in the blast and looked to be disintegrated. Of course, looks can be deceiving in the world of Stranger Things, so fans aren’t totally convinced that Hopper’s gone for good.
Now, a brief tease from Eleven herself, Millie Bobby Brown, may have stoked the fires even more. While speaking to EW, Brown revealed how she approached shooting the scene where El reads a letter written by her adoptive father after his death. The actress explained that David Harbour reciting the letter was played on-set and she had never previously read or rehearsed the speech beforehand to make sure she could give a raw, emotional reaction to the words.
“I just immediately wanted to put a camera on me and find the way I react and the way I reacted was pure devastation and sadness, and a distraught child that just lost her father or so she thinks. So it was definitely a raw emotion, especially because David Harbour and I are really close. He is just one of the greatest men. I think something I admire about David is he respects girls and women so much. It felt so … I’m so gutted and I was like, ‘Oh, my God, this is horrible.’ So the emotions were raw in that scene for sure.”
Did everyone spot the relevant phrase there? “Or so she thinks” definitely suggests that there might be more to the situation than meets the eye. And this might not just be Brown being as confused as us as in the same interview, she let slip that she’s managed to hoodwink showrunners the Duffer brothers into giving her clues about what’s coming in season 4.
So, how could Hopper have survived? Well, back in the season 1 finale, something similar happened to Eleven. She appeared to have died stopping the Demogorgon but had actually ended up in the Upside Down. Maybe Hopper was sucked through the gate by the explosion?
Alternatively, Stranger Things season 3’s post-credits scene sees the Russians mention having an “American” locked up in one of their cells. Fans believe Hopper is a likely candidate for this unlucky sap and honestly, they’re probably right.