Indiana Jones Vibe For Hopper in Stranger Things 4
The “Chief Hopper” and “Indiana Jones” comparison remains well-trod in Alden 405 boots. It’s been mentioned plenty, and, I mean, even the silhouette matches.
Indy looks good in a hat.
Hopper looks good in a hat.
But, frankly folks, I could use a bunch more Indy and Hopper in my life.
Stranger Things 4 – Coming Soon?
Possible Spoilers for Stranger Things 4 ahead:
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While we have to wait for Indy 5 (2022), we do have “new” Hopper coming (how new is yet to be seen). And, according to David Harbour, the Henry Jones and Jim Hopper connection will just get stronger in Stranger Things 4.
In June, Ross Duffer (of Stranger Things’ Duffer Brothers showrunners) told Deadline, “We don’t want to just repeat ourselves.”
However, for David Harbour — who grew up in the 1980s — the show does recreate the zeitgeist of the decade very well.
Hopper: Scenes From The 1980’s
“I was born in ’75,” explained Harbour, speaking to the shopping mall-fed nostalgia in Season 3. “So the 80s are my wheelhouse. I’m like Will Byers age; a little bit younger than him I think.”
But in the “coda” to last season; the trailer for Season 4, Hopper doesn’t look very young.
And, while it’s hinted he somehow survived the climax of Season 3, he doesn’t look to be in a very good spot.
Enter more Indiana Jones comparisons (and Magnum PI, too – but that’s another story).
I’ve Got Nothing Better To Do
Indy is crazy.
“From the very beginning, I’ve had this idea that Hopper being this guy who has to ‘die’; who has to pay for sort of how he’s living,” explained Harbour, whose character’s headlong dives into danger show more than a willingness to self-sacrifice. “And each season he comes to some realization.
“Like when he finds Will…I feel like he’s able to come alive again; he can breathe again,” he added. “And at the end of Season 2 he’s able to explore more of that father issue.
“But I’ve always kind of hung on to the idea that the only way to re-connect with [Hopper’s daughter] Sara’s character…I’ve always felt he had to die.”
Hopper is crazy.
Has Hopper Chosen Wisely?
Well, now I have visions of miraculous dashes through the jungle, nuked refrigerators, and Holy Grails in mind. Because Indiana Jones always seems to be trying to overcome past failures, as well.
“Hopper is ‘The American’ in that Russian prison,” said Harbour, perhaps cluing us into the first Jonesian moment of Season 4. “It’s very epic and very big in a Stranger Things way – there are monsters, there’s horror, there are scares.
“And there’s also great Indiana Jones-type action.
“But we also get to see some of Hopper’s really deep backstory that we’ve hinted at with the boxes in Season 2. And I’m really excited to let people see these really deep colors in him. Because each season we see a different side of him,” he said.
So, will Season 4 of Stranger Things watch like a sped-up James Hopper Chronicles? Let’s hope so.
In the meantime, I’ll have to compile a list of Indiana Jones references in Seasons 1 – 3 and hope that COVID-19 allows the fourth season to be shot, soon.
