David Harbour: It’s Time for Stranger Things to End With Season 5

The upcoming fifth season of Stranger Things will be the show’s last, and ahead of its conclusion, star David Harbour says that he’s ready to say goodbye to one of the biggest shows ever.

Speaking to Discussing Film, Harbour — who plays police officer Jim Hopper in the series — said that while he initially didn’t think he’d ever want the show to end, he thinks it is now time for the show to come to a close.

“What’s funny is when I started the show, I never ever wanted it to end. That’s why I love the show. I think it’s a great show, even if I wasn’t in it,” Harbour said. “Now we’re almost nine years from filming the first season, and I think it is time for it to end.”

Harbour did say that the show coming to an end is “very bittersweet,” but that he thinks it’s time for everyone to “leave that nest” and begin trying other things.

“But it is, of course, very bittersweet. You know, there’s a sadness there,” Harbour explained. “But also, we’ve all grown up. It is time for us to leave that nest and try other things and different projects. And to let the Duffer Brothers try different things as well. I mean, those guys are so talented. I want to see what they come up with next. So it is bittersweet, but it’s definitely time.”

Stranger Things is set in the 1980s in the fictional town of Hawkins, Indiana. When a young boy vanishes, a small town uncovers a mystery involving secret experiments, terrifying supernatural forces, and one strange little girl.

The series currently stars Winona Ryder, David Harbour, Millie Bobby Brown, Finn Wolfhard, Noah Schnapp, Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb McLaughlin, Natalia Dyer, Joe Keery, Charlie Heaton, Sadie Sink, Maya Hawke, Priah Ferguson, Cara Buono, and Brett Gelman.

Stranger Things Season 4 set a record for Netflix, having been viewed for more than 287 million hours during the week of May 23-30. That’s not only good enough for the top spot of the week for Netflix, but it’s also more than enough to break the record for the streaming platform’s biggest-ever premiere weekend for an English-language series, which was previously held by the second season of Bridgerton (193 million hours).