Judging by David Harbour’s comments, fans will need tissues when watching the Stranger Things season 5 finale.
On Thursday, Harbour appeared at the Happy Sad Confused podcast’s 10th anniversary celebration at New York Comic Con. Harbour gave the live crowd a little treat by teasing what they can expect for Stranger Things season 5. Harbour and his castmates have read the series finale, which he called “the best episode they’ve ever done.” The finale was so good that it moved people to tears.
“The end of this [final] episode, when we were reading it — just us reading it — about halfway through, people started crying,” Harbour said. “Then about the last 20 minutes, it was just uncontrollably crying, waves of different people. Noah Schnapp being my favorite.”
In Harbour’s mind, Stranger Things creators Matt and Ross Duffer “landed the plane” for a satisfying conclusion to the five-season show. Harbour, who stars as Jim Hopper, has worked with this young cast for nearly a decade, so he’s witnessed their growth from a young age. The transition from childhood to adulthood plays a major theme this season that Harbour believes will be a hit with fans.
“I think part of that also is the fact that these kids, it was their childhood. Like, they started the show when they were 11 and 12, and here we are reading [the finale],” Harbour added. “It’s 10 years later, and we examine that idea, and it’s so well done and so beautiful … It’s such a great episode, and it’s such a great season. You guys will love it.”
In July, Netflix released a teaser for Stranger Things season 5 to mark the halfway point of filming. Besides Harbour, season 5’s cast features Winona Ryder as Joyce, Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven, Finn Wolfhard as Mike, Caleb McLaughlin as Lucas, Gaten Matarazzo as Dustin, Noah Schnapp as Will, Natalia Dyer as Nancy, Charlie Heaton as Jonathan, Joe Keery as Steve, and Maya Hawke as Robin.
Stranger Things season 5 is expected to arrive on Netflix in 2025.