Character1940
James Hopper Jr. is a fictional character from the Netflix science fiction horror television series Stranger Things, portrayed by David Harbour. He is a Vietnam veteran and the al…
Read and enrich the people, organizations and context referenced in case files.
Explore the cases that include this wiki entry.
No case files include this entry yet.
Investigate this subjectJames Hopper Jr. is a fictional character from the Netflix science fiction horror television series Stranger Things, portrayed by David Harbour.
James Hopper Jr. is a fictional character from the Netflix science fiction horror television series Stranger Things, portrayed by David Harbour. He is a Vietnam veteran and the alcoholic chief of police in the small town of Hawkins, Indiana, who, throughout the first three seasons, investigates the strange occurrences in the town. Initially fairly reclusive and lonely due to the death of his daughter, Hopper gradually grows out of his shell, becoming the adoptive father of Eleven, and later starting a relationship with Joyce Byers.
Harbour's performance and the character itself have been well-received by critics. However, his character development in the third season was negatively received, due to being seen as regressive, hypermasculine, and misogynistic.
James "Jim" Hopper Jr., nicknamed "Hop", is the chief of Hawkins Police Department. Hopper has lived in Hawkins nearly all his life, having attended high school with Joyce Byers and Bob Newby. Hopper served in the Chemical Corps during the Vietnam War, where he worked with Agent Orange, an experience he believes to have led to his daughter Sara's fatal illness. Hopper was married to Diane and they had a daughter together, Sara. They divorced after their young daughter died of cancer, which caused him to lapse into alcohol and drug addiction to numb his grief. For a few years after Sara's death, he was a homicide detective in New York City before moving back to Hawkins. Eventually he grows to be more responsible, saving Will Byers as well as taking Eleven in as his adopted daughter. In Season 3 he tries to break up Eleven and Mike since their relationship is moving too fast for him, while Hopper himself is falling in love with Joyce.
In Season 1, Hopper is a chainsmoking, alcoholic cop in Hawkins, Indiana. He is approached by a former high school classmate, Joyce Byers, who tells him her son, Will, has gone missing. Joyce tells Chief Hopper about the static phone call she received and suspected was Will's breathing. Hopper is reluctant to believe her but admits that the charring of the phone from the surge of electricity is unusual.
Hopper realizes as the season continues that there is a vast conspiracy hiding at Hawkins Lab and he is instrumental in the mission to find and save Will. After Eleven's apparent death, Hopper is seen leaving some food in the snowy woods, including Eggos, Eleven's favorite food.
In flashbacks, Eleven manages to escape from the Upside Down but is forced to remain hidden in Hopper's cabin in the woods to avoid government agents. Hopper forbids her from leaving or from letting Mike or anyone else know that she is still alive. In the present, the kids prepare for Halloween. Eleven asks to go trick-or-treating, but Hopper insists that she needs to remain hidden. Hopper investigates when pumpkins patches all over town suddenly start rotting. The relationship between Hopper and Eleven is strained by this isolation, even more so when he cuts the wires to the television set. Hopper and Joyce monitor Will's visits to Hawkins Lab when he exhibits signs that he is still being influenced by the Upside Down. Hopper has to be rescued from the underground tunnels when he tries to explore them alone. He is once more instrumental in solving the mystery of the demodogs and the pumpkin rot, and ultimately takes Eleven to the basement in Hawkins to close the gate once more. After working with Eleven to close the gate he strikes a deal to officially adopt Eleven.
At the beginning of Season 3, Eleven and Mike have been dating for 7 months, much to the dismay of Hopper, who is annoyed that Eleven and Mike are constantly together, spending all of their time alone kissing. When Hopper confesses to Joyce that he feels uncomfortable about the situation, she suggests that he should sit down and calmly talk to Eleven and Mike about how he feels. He tries to prepare a written "heart-to-heart" speech, but when he tries to give it, it backfires and Hopper resorts to verbally threatening Mike to stay away from Eleven or he will end their relationship.
Hopper's talks with Joyce lead him to become more bold in asking her on a dinner date. Joyce misses the date and Hopper finds out that she instead spent the evening with Scott Clarke, the school science teacher, asking about why her refrigerator magnets have lost their magnetism, leading Hopper to become jealous. Joyce begs Hopper to take her back to the abandoned Hawkins lab to see if there's any equipment running; while there, Hopper is attacked by Russian enforcer Grigori. Having seen Grigori before at the Mayor's office, Hopper confronts Mayor Kline about Grigori and learns that the developers of Starcourt Mall, whom Grigori works for, have also bought up several other properties in Hawkins. Hopper and Joyce visit several of the properties, finding one that serves as a front for a Russian lab. Before Grigori attacks them, Hopper and Joyce take Alexei—one of the scientists working there—as a hostage and elude Grigori. Hopper and Joyce take Alexei to conspiracy theorist Murray to help translate Alexei's Russian, learning there is a large Russian base under the mall where Russian scientists are trying to open the gate to the Upside Down. Alexei divulges to Murray how they can stop and destroy the gate.
Hopper and Joyce bring Murray and Alexei along as they race back to Hawkins to see if their children are safe. Murray and Alexei recognize that Hopper and Joyce have unacknowledged feelings for each other. They stop at the Independence Day fair, and while Hopper and Joyce search the grounds, Murray shows Alexei around. While Murray and Alexei are enjoying the 4th of July fair, Joyce grabs Hopper's hand. Grigori arrives and kills Alexei as other Russian agents give chase to Hopper. Hopper runs away while holding hands with Joyce. Hopper bests them, and he, Joyce, and Murray race for the mall, where they reunite with the children, and learn that the giant Mind Flayer is about to attack but can be
Source: Jim Hopper (Stranger Things) (CC BY-SA)
We label verified structured information, user opinions, and AI-discovered relationships separately.
Be the first to comment.
