In a recent interview with The Wrap, Stranger Things stars Millie Bobby-Brown and Noah Schnapp joked that the show needs to ‘adopt a Game of Thrones mindset’ and start killing more characters off.
Brown, who plays Eleven, said “The Duffer Brothers are sensitive sallies who don’t want to kill anybody off. We need to have the mindset of Game of Thrones. Kill me off! They tried killing David off and they brought him back!”
Scnhapp, who plays Will, added “One of us will die. Or more. The cast is so big.”
The new season premiered on 27 May but most people won’t have had chance to binge the entirety of Season 4 yet. So, to avoid spoilers, we’re going to remind ourselves of the most memorable character deaths so far, before the Season 4 bingeing begins.
Barbara Holland – Season 1
Barbara Holland, Nancy’s best friend, was the show’s first major death back in Season 1. She suffered a gruesome demise, killed by a Demogorgan in the Upside Down. For a while, people just believed she was missing, leading Nancy and Johnathan Byers to search for her. This was a sad death, especially for Nancy. Nancy was the one who encouraged her to come along to the pool party that led to her death. It also sparked #JusticeforBarb on social media.
The Demogorgan – Season 1
The Demogorgan death is one that we all wanted, and it was only right that it was killed by Eleven, its strongest rival and the show’s hero. The Demogorgan killed many minor characters in season 1 and terrorized the town of Hawkins, by travelling from the Upside Down via portal and wreaking havok.
Bob Newby – Season 2
Bob Newby was Joyce Byers’ boyfriend in season 2 and, in my opinion, was one of the saddest deaths. After everything she went through in the first season, Joyce deserved a happy ending. Bob was a kind-hearted and genuine character, so fans were sad when he was killed off. The good part is he had a hero’s death. He died saving Joyce and Will from the dog-like creatures at the lab and was killed by a Demogorgan in front of his family.
Dr Alexi – Season 3
Dr Alexi was a Russian scientist who switched to the good side and formed a friendship with Joyce, Hopper and Murray. He was shot by Grigori at the fairground and didn’t make it. This was a surprisingly sad death as he was a character that grew on a lot of people and he died shortly after winning a giant stuffed animal at the fun-fair. Sad, right?
Grigori – Season 3
Grigori was a Russian hitman working on the Key under Starcourt Mall. He got an order to kill Joyce and Hopper but Hopper ended up killing him. Again, this is a death that viewers were definitely happy about.
Billy Hargrove – Season 3
This is definitely up there with the saddest deaths so far for me. Billy, Max Mayfield’s stepbrother, was a major character in the third season. He was a misunderstood character. Yes, he was mean to his sister and others, but deep down he wasn’t an awful guy. He was just clearly going through some stuff. He was possessed by the Mind Flayer and became pretty much a monster. He actually died sacrificing himself to save Eleven, after she saved him from mind control. He apologised to Max for everything before being stabbed to death by the Mind Flayer.
The Spider Monster – Season 3
The Spider Monster was the main antagonist of this season and was killed in the finale by Joyce Byers, during the showdown at Starcourt Mall. It was a weapon created by the Mind Flayer to kill more people, but Joyce and Hopper got into the Russian lab and managed to kill it and sever the connection.
So, there you have it so far. Although some of the deaths were sad, none were major characters aside from Billy, and none of the original season 1 cast have actually died. Maybe Millie Bobby Brown has a point, but let’s not speak too soon. Who knows who’s going to die in the show’s final run.