Stranger Things' David Harbour Explains Reason Behind His Dramatic Season 4 Transformation

David Harbour has admitted he was more than up for his dramatic Stranger Things transformation, revealing he didn’t “want to play the same notes” as he returned for season four. 

Last week, the actor revealed he lost 34kg for a storyline in the hit Netflix series that sees his character, police chief Jim Hopper, imprisoned in a Soviet labour camp.

Now speaking to Variety about the switch up between seasons three and four, which saw Hopper go from “stuffing himself with chips and salsa” to giving his food away in prison, David said he was happy to pivot. 

“I don’t want to play the same notes,” David said. “So I said let’s go for it and have him lose weight and shave his head and do something that is such a dramatic difference from season three.”

He added: “I’m sorry for all the fans who lost the dad bod, but I will tell you this: David Harbour will have dad bods in the future, I have no doubt.”  

The 47-year-old star went through an intense eight months of dieting and training to change shape for the show, which he previously described as “difficult and exciting ride”. 

Sharing a series of before-and-after photos on Instagram last week, David wrote: “Second pic is me and David the week we began, my resistances and fury flaring.

“All told I lost over 75lbs. 265-270 in season 3 and all the way down to 190 when we shot.”

David then revealed that he had recently gained weight to play Santa Claus in the new Christmas movie, Violent Night.

“Recently ballooned up again to play jolly ole st. Nick in a flick I can’t wait for you to see this holiday season,” he wrote. “So I am struggling to fight back down towards a good weight for wherever Hopper ends up in season 5.”

He added: “All this up and down is not good for the body, and I’ll have to give it up soon, but it is such a fun part of the job to live in a different version of your skin for a while.”

Meanwhile, David has also told Variety that he believed there were “several times” where he thought his Stranger Things character should have died.

“I certainly thought that in the beginning, because he was so destroyed and hell bent on destruction. Then when it seemed like he went in season three, I was happy for him,” he said, admitting things have since changed.  

“As he’s being resurrected as the man he wants to become, it would almost be nicer to keep him alive. Let’s see what they choose.”  

Stranger Things seasons 1-4 are available on Netflix now.