Stranger Things 4 will have a “huge reveal about Hopper’s backstory”

When last we saw Chief Jim Hopper (David Harbour) in Stranger Things season 3, he was blown up along a Russian-built machine deep beneath the Starcourt Mall in Hawkins, Indiana, where the Reds were trying to punch a hole through to the grim Upside Down dimension in a scheme that was always going to end in disaster.

Although apparently they didn’t learn anything from it. Fans were distraught over Hopper’s death, but a teaser at the end of season 3 suggested he might have somehow pulled through. And then Netflix had pity on us and released a teaser that revealed Hopper was alive and working in a Russian labor camp in Kamchatka.

Now that the cat is out of the bag, what can we expect from Hopper in season 4? Let’s go to the tape! In March of this year, Harbour answered questions from fans at the Liverpool Comic Con.

It’s weird to see people out in a public place as recently as March. What if that was the last public comic con in history?

“So there are these three things that we’ve established in the season that if we don’t pay off, it means that they’re bad writers,” Harbour said. “And the Duffer brothers are very good writers. So I know specifically that in Season 4 we will give you a big, huge reveal about Hopper’s backstory.”

In season 2, Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) found boxes of papers in the cabin where she was staying with Hopper. Three of those boxes were labeled “Dad,” “Vietnam” and “New York.” According to Harbour, we’ll find out more about all of that in season 4.

“I’m so excited about revealing this aspect of the character,” he said. “It’s one of the things that I’ve known since the first frame of the first shot, and we haven’t expressed it yet. And finally we’re gonna express it in a big way. It’s my favorite thing about him that you guys don’t know about him yet, but it has to do with these backstories of New York, Vietnam, and dad. And I’m really excited for you guys to know more about that, and it relates, of course, to things he’s doing with Eleven and Joyce and things like that.”

“Vietnam” should be pretty self-explanatory. Clearly, Hopper was a soldier at one point. He was also a police officer in New York. And we know nothing about his dad.

Production on season Stranger Things 4 had barely begun when things were shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which could mean we probably won’t get to see this “huge reveal” about Hopper for a while. The wait continues.

To stay up to date on everything fantasy, science fiction, and WiC, follow our all-encompassing Facebook page and sign up for our exclusive newsletter.

Get HBO, Starz, Showtime and MORE for FREE with a no-risk, 7-day free trial of Amazon Channels

h/t IndieWire