Although David Harbour was a mess when he portrayed the role of Officer Jim Hopper in Netflix’s Stranger Things, he was a lovable mess that fans have known and loved across all the seasons of this iconic show.
Much like Christian Bale, who follows the art of method acting for his roles, David Harbour also had a time when he stopped working out, ironically, for the role of a police officer out in the Midwest. The actor talked about how he went opposite direction of what every actor does for his role in Stranger Things and how the people let him “be a mess”.
David Harbour wanted to be a mess for a while
At the beginning of Stranger Things, a lazy Officer Jim Hopper wakes up startled. A crayon drawing on his table shows us that Hopper is a father, and soon we get to know that his daughter is no more.
Jim Hopper can be appropriately described as a mess at the beginning of season 1 of Stranger Things. That is, until he finds solace, comfort (and his deceased daughter) in Millie Bobby Brown’s Eleven.
When he wakes up, Jim Hopper has a blue ribbon tied around his wrist. Since he was initially a mess, fans didn’t really find themselves loving Jim Hopper during the introductory episodes of this iconic Netflix show. However, as time goes on, we see that this emotionless police officer has a heart after all.
That is what David Harbour wanted us to believe in during the initial episode, as a quick chat with GQ was all it took for Harbour to say that although he was a mess, he wanted to be that mess.
I was always kind of like all actors – kind of bullshitty, working out, and trying to… whatever. And then on [Stranger Things], I just stopped working out. I just ate doughnuts, like a cop would in the Midwest.
He further continued,
And I didn’t shave. And I was just like: f*ck it. He’s a mess. Let him be a mess. And let me be a mess while we’re shooting.
Well, the mess worked, and David Harbour was welcomed by the world as Officer Jim Hopper, father to Millie Bobby Brown’s Eleven. The actor gladly became a mess for the role, and although he enjoyed it, he was also following in the footsteps of Christian Bale.
Not in the same direction, but in the opposite direction of what Christian Bale went for in his role in The Machinist. For his role as Trevor Reznik, Bale reportedly lost 63 pounds for the role!
David Harbour joined Christian Bale in breaking this Hollywood rule!
Both actors have taken on some iconic roles that have required them to lose weight. The role of Jim Hopper by David Harbour and the role of Trevor Reznik by Christian Bale have both received worldwide acclaim for their portrayal.
According to The Huffington Post, Bale lost a whopping 63 pounds for the role of Trevor Reznik in The Machinist. On the other hand, David Harbour gained several pounds of fat and stopped shaving for Stranger Things.
In a way, Christian Bale and David Harbour both broke the iconic unspoken rule in Hollywood, which dictates that you have to be in complete physical fitness at all times to get the role. Although one lost it and the other gained it, the dedication to these roles goes on to show how willing the actors are to make it happen.
Naturally, both projects received iconic ratings and millions of people became their fans. David Harbour and Christian Bale became the rule-breakers of Hollywood because they loved their character more than the unspoken rule.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
