David Harbour turned to known flop Ryan Reynolds after Hellboy bombed
By Ashley Hurst
David Harbour’s portrayal of Jim Hopper in Stranger Things is the role of a lifetime. He’s been a key figure in the show from the beginning. But for every beloved role, there are bound to be a few blunders along the way. Enter Hellboy (2019), where Harbour played the titular character. The movie bombed so hard that he sought the advice of Ryan Reynolds; someone who knows all about superhero movie flops.
So how bad did it get for Hellboy? Well, the movie currently boasts an 18% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and 5.2/10 on IMDb. In terms of revenue, it managed $55.1 million at the global box office against a $50 million budget. Yikes.
After Hellboy flopped, Harbour feared the worst, so he got in touch with Ryan Reynolds, whose superhero movie Green Lantern failed miserably when it was released in 2011 and has been the butt of many jokes and memes since, something the actor takes in good humor.
“I know [Reynolds] a little bit,” Harbour told GQ Magazine. “I called him and I was like, ‘Hey man, I just need to know something. You know Green Lantern? Huge flop for you. What the fuck is that like, because I think I’m going to hit that right now. Am I gonna be okay? Am I gonna survive this?”
According to Harbour, Reynolds was “sweet,” which I don’t doubt for a second. I mean, Reynolds certainly landed on his feet. His next superhero flick, Deadpool, was a resounding success.
Stranger Things star David Harbour remembers the epic flop of Hellboy
At first, David Harbour was keen to show everyone his version of Hellboy, given that we already had two good Hellboy movies directed by Guillermo del Toro with Ron Perlman in the title role, a reboot didn’t feel necessary. “It was a very difficult experience because I wanted a lot out of it,” Harbour said. “I really like [Hellboy creator Mike Mignola], I like that character. And then immediately when it began, even when it was announced, I realized that people did not want that character reinvented. I was very naive and optimistic about what we were going to do.”
Given the immense success of Stranger Things, I don’t think Harbour can be too disheartened by one bad movie. I’m sure big roles will keep on coming for him.
Stranger Things season 4 is currently streaming on Netflix!
Next. David Harbour discusses the “fan service” from the Stranger Things finale. dark
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