Stranger Things Stars Hope For More Deaths In Season 5

Even with Stranger Things' high death toll, Millie Bobby Brown and Noah Schnapp call for a dark season 5, hoping for main characters to be killed off.

Stranger Things Stars Hope For More Deaths In Season 5

While they trust the Duffer Brothers to give Stranger Things a fantastic conclusion, Millie Bobby Brown and Noah Schnapp have some thoughts about how the show should end when it comes to its body count. The hit Netflix series follows a group of friends and their guardians as they investigate the odd paranormal occurrences going on in Hawkins, Indiana, after colliding with the incredibly powerful Eleven (Brown). Stranger Things takes inspiration from classic ’80s horror movies like the Freddy Krueger franchise and Stephen King’s catalogue of creepy works.

Stranger Things has racked up a serious death toll over its current 3-season run, with characters being slaughtered by ghastly creatures and those that protect the Upside Down. Each season more characters are added to the list for audiences to mourn, like season 1’s Benny (Chris Sullivan) and Barb (Shannon Purser), and season 2’s Bob Newby (Sean Astin). Stranger Things season 3 was particularly brutal in its death count, notably adding Dr. Alexei (Alec Utgoff) and Billy (Dacre Montgomery), who was possessed by the Mind Flayer and later sacrificed himself to protect his sister and her friends.

But these deaths aren’t enough for the Stranger Things cast, as during an interview with The Wrap, Schnapp and Brown call for something more ruthless. The pair mention that during the season 4 premiere, they couldn’t get a picture with the whole cast together due to the sheer number of members, joking that the Duffer Brothers should kill off characters to make it easier. Schnapp suggests that they should kill off one of the main characters in a “twist” ending, with Brown volunteering Eleven as a sacrifice. Read their full quote below:

Brown: [the Duffer Brothers] need to start killing people off.
Schnapp: They just need to have one massacre scene, kill half the cast off.
B: One huge massacre scene. … The Duffer Brothers are two sensitive sallies that don’t want to kill anybody off. We need to be Game of Thrones; we need to have the mindset of Game of Thrones.
S: And just kill like a main-main character.
B: I know! Kill me off!
S: Twist the whole thing.
B: They tried killing David off and they brought him back!

Like Billy, Hopper (David Harbour) sacrificed himself for the greater good, but it looks like both characters might be making a reappearance in Stranger Things season 4. While visiting Billy’s grave, Max floats above his plot, and many have theorized that he may be possessing his sister through his connection to the Mind Flayer. Harbour’s return is much more concrete as Stranger Things left hints that Hopper could, against all odds, still be alive. Later, as stated by Brown, the Duffer Brothers confirmed that Hopper is indeed still alive, but not faring too well as he is stuck in a snowy Russian prison.

Given how dangerous Hawkins has become over the years, it’s surprising that none of the kids have been gravely injured thus far. The works that Stranger Things emulates have never shied away from killing off characters. While Stranger Things does mirror their brutal attitude towards death, most of the main cast has managed to get away unscathed. However, that could be changing with the upcoming final two seasons. Throughout the series, Eleven used her powers to protect her friends, but after losing her supernatural abilities at the end of Stranger Things season 3, the stakes are a lot higher for the next several episodes.