The world premiere of Stranger Things‘ fifth and final season Thursday night was a largely joyous affair for everyone involved (save for the time close to 1,000 invited guests had to spend cooped up in the Chinese Theatre with their phones locked as the screening started an hour late.)
The cast and creators smiled and posed for photos on the red carpet as they appeared to be enjoying each other’s company. That included stars Millie Bobby Brown and David Harbour who hugged and shared a laugh in front of photographers.
The two were closely watched at the premiere, their every movement and word scrutinized, as their reunion came days after a Nov. 1 Daily Mail report that claimed that the British actress, who plays girl with supernatural abilities Eleven on the show, had filed a harassment and bullying complaint against Harbour, who portrays her adoptive father Jim.
The controversy, fueled by the silence from all parties involved and Harbour’s ex-wife Lily Allen’s recently released “revenge album,” threatened to overshadow the premiere. It didn’t happen, with the cast and creators presenting united front, Brown and Harbour arriving together, Netflix releasing video of them and Brown posting a joint photo on social.
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Nobody addressed the accusations directly, with Brown and Harbour praising each other in separate interviews and co-creator Ross Duffer telling THR that “nothing matters more than just having a set where everyone feels safe and happy.”
According to sources, there was a tiff between Brown and Harbour, and she did complain about his behavior, however it may not have been as recent as the report suggested, but earlier in the series’ run. It was dealt with, and there hadn’t been issues since, sources said.
After posing on the red carpet, Brown, Harbour and the rest of the cast took the stage inside the Chinese Theatre, where they were introduced by the series’ creators, Matt and Ross Duffer.
The Duffer brothers, the series director/executive producer Shawn Levy and Netflix’s co-CEO Ted Sarandos and Chief Creative Officer Bela Bajaria spoke before the screening of the Season 5 premiere episode, all becoming emotional as they did.
“I was in a magical place 10 years ago when Stranger Things was pitched to Netflix,” Sarandos said, noting that while House of Cards put the streamer on the original series map, “our real moment was when we put on Stranger Things,” a show that “moved the culture.”
Stranger Things was the first hit produced and fully owned by Netflix (earlier standouts like House of Cards and Orange Is the New Black came from outside studios), and its massive popularity turned it into a lucrative brand and merchandising bonanza for the tech company.
The Duffer brothers thanked the people they considered to have played a crucial role in Stranger Things‘ success, including Dan Cohen, the former executive at Shawn Levy’s company who was the first to champion their script after many rejections, Levy who embraced it, Sarandos, who got it on the platform, and the fans who helped to make it into a world phenomenon. They also acknowledged Bajaria for her support of the show over its last two seasons.
The speeches made it seem like Sarandos was the one who took the Stranger Things pitch and greenlighted the series. As Chief Creative Officer at the time, Sarandos did have ultimate greenlight authority, and his role in Stranger Things‘ success is undeniable. There were others, too.
Several years ago, the Duffers presented a different version in an essay for Time magazine about Cindy Holland, Netflix’s former head of English-language scripted originals under Sarandos.
“When we pitched Stranger Things to Netflix, we were told Cindy Holland was the key,” they wrote in 2018. “As it turns out, she’s also extremely difficult to read in a room. We left the pitch certain of only one thing: Cindy hated it. One day later, she greenlighted our show, and our lives changed.”
There was no mention of Holland in any of the on-stage remarks at the premiere. That is not unusual — it is standard Hollywood practice for executives to be erased once replaced. Still, an occasion such as the end of an extraordinary successful show could call for an exception.
Another detail from the on-stage remarks was not lost on the attendees. The Netflix executives made a point to introduce the Duffer brothers — who are set to leave the streamer in April for a film and TV deal at Paramount that will allow them to make theatrical features and reunite with Holland and another former Netflix exec involved in Stranger Things‘ ascend, Matt Thunell — as being “a big part of the Netflix family.”
Season 5 of Stranger Things premieres Nov. 26 with Part 1, followed by Part 2 on Dec. 25 and the finale on Dec. 31.