What's really going on with the 'Stranger Things' bullying drama? The stars speak out!
The final season of “Stranger Things” had its red carpet premiere last night, amid some alleged behind the scenes drama.
So, what’s been happening?
There was an unverified report from The Daily Mail last Saturday that Millie Bobby Brown, who plays Eleven on the Netflix series, filed a “harassment and bullying claim” that did not include “sexual impropriety” against David Harbour, who plays Sheriff Hopper, Eleven’s adoptive dad.
"Millie Bobby Brown filed a harassment and bullying claim before they started shooting the last season," a source told the outlet. "The investigation went on for months."
The complaint came just as the “Stranger Things” cast and crew were embarking on their press tour for the show’s big send off.
Netflix, Brown, and Harbour didn’t address the news publicly, but whatever issues the two may have head appear to at least be smoothed over for now since they posed together at the premiere Thursday night.
On the carpet, the two laughed and hugged each other, posing for photos and appearing in good spirits with one another.
“Stranger Things” co-creator Ross Duffer addressed the claims of a rift on the premiere, telling The Hollywood Reporter, “Obviously, you understand I can’t get into personal on-set matters, but I will say we’ve been doing this for 10 years with this cast, and at this point they’re family and we deeply care about them. So, you know, nothing matters more than just having a set where everyone feels safe and happy.”
The show’s director and executive producer Shawn Levy also addressed the claims.
“At the end of the day, that’s the job,” Levy replied. “You have to create a respectful workplace where everyone feels comfortable and safe, and so we did everything to build that environment. And we’re proud of the fact that we did so.”
He continued, “I’ve read a bunch of stories and they range from wildly inaccurate to there’s so much noise around it. But the truth is that we view this crew and this cast as family, and so we treat each other with respect, and that’s always been bedrock.”
People have been looking back at past interviews from both actors for clues about their dynamic.
In 2021, Harbour appeared on “That Scene with Dan Patrick” podcast, recalling, "Millie and I have always had sort of a special relationship because I knew her when she was so young. I knew her before any of this big fame hit.
As the seasons progressed, their character’s father-daughter relationship followed typical familial growing pains, something Brown spoke about in 2018 during a PaleyFest panel.
"We went through so many different emotions... we get angry at each other, we are like father and daughter," she said at the time, according to Refinery29. She added, they “got angry with each other” and expressed their feelings “on and off set.” The then 14-year-old noted "Those scenes were so raw and real that the reward is the scenes."
Harbour has also been under scrutiny in the past weeks following the release of his ex-wife Lily Allen’s new album, “West End Girl,” which reportedly contains references in its lyrics to the “Thunderbolts” star being allegedly unfaithful during their relationship.
“Stranger Things” final season streams Nov. 26 on Netflix.



