David Harbour Wants Euphoria Star To Play Young Hopper In Stranger Things Prequel
There are plans to make a Stranger Things prequel, and now David Harbour has selected who he thinks would be the perfect person to play a young Hopper.
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Stranger Things has continued its reign on Netflix as one of the most popular series to hit streaming platforms in the last few years. The release of season four’s volume two this past weekend has proven that the show has staying power, even considering the unusual length of each episode. Star David Harbour carries on his trend with viewers as a fan favorite, playing Jim Hopper opposite Winona Ryder’s Joyce Byers, clawing his way this season out of a Russian prison. Recently, Harbour made some surprising news about what young actor he might want to see play his same character in a hypothetical Stranger Things prequel.
According to comicbook.com, David Harbour has selected Euphoria star Jacob Elordi as an excellent choice to play a younger version of Jim Hopper in a proposed prequel to Stranger Things. In an interview with GQ, the 6’3″ Harbour stated that if Stranger Things continues in the form of spin-offs or prequels, he’d love to see what a different actor could do as an embodiment of Hopper. He goes on to say that the 6’5″ Elordi would make a fine choice because “He could pull off being as handsome as I was at 20.” Ever the confident actor, Harbour added that he would love to watch someone else take on playing Jim Hopper independent of Harbour’s involvement.
Stranger Things debuted on Netflix in 2016 to a new generation of science fiction horror fans. After completing its fourth season, the series is still on top, with a Rotten Tomatoes score of 91% on its Tomatometer from critics and a healthy 90% from audiences. The series is set to wrap altogether with its fifth season, due to hopefully come out sometime in 2023 or 2024. Since its inception, the show has starred David Harbour and Winona Ryder and introduced audiences to a new crop of talent like Millie Bobby Brown, Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb McLaughlin, Finn Wolfhard, Natalia Dyer, Charlie Heaton, Noah Schnapp, and Joe Keery. The brainchild of showrunners Matt and Ross Duffer has been applauded for its take on 1980s nostalgia, pop culture references, explosive CGI effects, and supernatural elements.
David Harbour’s character in Stranger Things, Jim Hopper, was initially introduced as the chief of Hawkins Police Department, tasked with locating Will Byers after he goes missing in season one. Hopper is divorced, an alcoholic and a grieving father as his daughter passed away from cancer prior to the show’s events. Later in the series, he becomes the adopted father of Eleven, who changes her name to Jane Hopper to honor her new father. Harbour’s portrayal of Hopper has made him a popular choice among fans on social media who praise his “dad-bod” image through memes, per The New York Post. If an actor like Jacob Elordi took on the role of a younger Hopper, audiences would probably appreciate seeing the transition from a handsome, fit man to America’s favorite dad. At the very least, it would be a departure for Elordi to embody the strength of a character that has helped save Hawkins, Indiana, and the world, on several occasions.
