Reporting from Upside Down, it seems like Jim Hopper could have survived ‘Stranger Things’ season 3. How? Fans have come up with all kinds of theories. Find out below!
Season 3 of ‘Stranger Things’ ended on a massive cliff-hanger, and we can all agree that it was too shocking to be true. As for ‘Stranger Things’ season 4, the home team has been playing with our minds regarding the return of Jim Hopper. Fans, however, have come with certain theories that you can’t look away from indicating that Hopper has, after all, survived.
Highlights —
- David Harbour Drops Hints About Jim Hopper in Season 4
- Hopper Escaped the Bunker
- Hopper is in Russia
- Hopper is in the Upside Down
- The Mind Flayer has Possessed Hopper
David Harbour Drops Hints About Jim Hopper in Season 4
Here’s the big news! David Harbour has, very subtly if we may say so, hinted at the return of Jim Hopper for the fourth season of ‘Stranger Things’. There might not be a date yet to save for the premiere of the upcoming season, but most of the cast members have begun creating the chitchat for the episodes to come. David Harbour provided an idea about what could be in store for Hopper and some insights on the season 3 finale. He told
“People” that the viewers will get to “see a lot of your favorite characters doing the thing that you love them for … but you’ll also see them twist it and turn it into other colors and other flavours.” He also called Hopper a prisoner in the coming season and said, “And we get to see entirely other colors of him that has been hinted at… his season is my favorite because he really is going to show you some new colors and what he’s really made up of.”

Hopper Escaped the Bunker
Fans have noticed a ladder in the bunker and they believe that the ladder has been the escape route for Hopper. The last we see of Jim Hopper in season 3 of ‘Stranger Things’ is when he is with the machine watching it being destroyed in the bunker. Probably gone unnoticed, the room had a ladder if looked closely. It is uncertain as to where the ladder goes to or if Hopper had made it to the ladder in time escaping the energy beam, but it seems like a possibility. Also, it could be the key to explaining how Hopper was captured by the Russians.
Hopper is in Russia
Season 3 of ‘Stranger Things’ begins with scientists in Russia making an attempt at opening the gate to Upside Down but failing. The attempt blows in the face of the Russian scientists and is perhaps what makes way for Hopper to reach Russia through the gate. In the finale of ‘Stranger Things’ season 3, moments before the machine is shut down by Joyce, it seems like the gateway to Upside Down. So, it might be that opening the gate in Hawkins was just the push that the Russians had needed to open it on their side, making it possible for Jim Hopper to jump through the gate sending him to Russia.
Hopper is in the Upside Down
Another possibility is that Jim Hopper managed to enter the Upside Down after jumping through the gate in the ‘Stranger Things’ season 3 finale. In fact, Hopper has been in the Upside Down before in season 1 trying to save Will Byers. Therefore, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Hopper saw entering the gate to Upside Down as the last resort to save his life. Also, it could be that since Hopper is aware of how the Upside Down works, he enters the gate to it and navigates through it finding a way to reach a safe place.
The Mind Flayer has Possessed Hopper
This is a possibility and definitely an interesting one. Jim Hopper, as we see him in the last season of ‘Stranger Things’, is chunky and bushy with a lot of hair. Cut to the season 4 teaser, he is a different man. The passion and the spark in his eyes are gone, he has lost hair and weight, and everything seems unnaturally dry with the guy. We have seen the same effect on other characters before like Billy Hargrove. The point: he was possessed by the Mind Flayer. It could be then, that the Mind Flayer survived at the end of ‘Stranger Things’ season 3 and has probably possessed Jim Hopper.
How do you think Jim Hopper survived season 3 of ‘Stranger Things’? Let us know in the comments below!
