David Harbour Doesn't Want to Be Known as Hopper From STRANGER THINGS For the Rest of His Career, He Wants to Be a Film Actor
David Harbour had roles in several TV shows before he broke into the film business, and has acted in dozens of big and small screen parts since then. But he truly became a household name when he took on the role of Jim Hopper in the mega-hit Netflix series Stranger Things. Since becoming the beloved character, Harbour has been able to book some bigger film roles, and he’s hoping to hang on to that trajectory, and leave his TV roles behind once Stranger Things wraps after this next and final season.
The actor told Variety:
“It’s a funny position I’m in, which I never thought I would be in. The first year of ‘Stranger Things,’ I remember having a discussion with a publicist and her saying, ‘Maybe you don’t want to be associated with the show so much,’ and I was like, ‘Why? I love this show. I love the character.’ And I do love the show. And I do love the character. But I don’t want to be just that character. I don’t want to be just that guy.”
He went on to explain:
“I think about George Clooney leaving ‘ER.’ Now we just see him as George Clooney,” Harbour continued. “But there was a time when it was, ‘The guy from ‘ER’ is doing a movie with Nicole Kidman.' I’m trying to navigate some of that, and it’s tricky because you don’t want to shit on the people that love you for this thing that you did that you also love,” he concluded. “But at the same time, you kind of want to leave the nest. I got more in me. I got different stuff in me, and I want you guys to see that. I don’t want people yelling ‘Hopper’ on the street every five minutes the rest of my life.”
I was ready to get mad at him for saying he wanted to distance himself from the role, but I totally get what he’s saying. He has a way of saying things, he’s so endearing and he loves the role as much as we, the fans, do, so I respect that he is ready to venture out and make himself a more experienced and well-rounded actor.
Harbour’s next film, Gran Turismo, opens in theaters August 25th.