The Duffer Brothers Hilariously Respond To Deaths In Stranger Things

Stranger Things has been compared to another epic show, mainly when it comes to killing off characters, and the Duffer Brothers have hilariously reponded to that comparison.

By Matthew Creith | Published

This article is more than 2 years old

Eddie Munson Stranger Things

In recent years, Netflix’s investment in Stranger Things has proven to be one of the best collaborations between a streaming service platform and its creative partners. Matt and Ross Duffer, brothers who form one writing/directing team of geniuses, created a world within the 1980s that has kept fans captivated with visual effects, heart-wrenching dialogue, state-of-the-art nostalgia, and terrifying creatures that fly in the Upside Down, beneath the surface of a small midwestern town. With budgets that seem to expand from one season to the next, the series has been compared to HBO’s successful fantasy epic Game of Thrones, which completed its run in 2019 after eight seasons and 73 episodes.

Stranger Things star Millie Bobby Brown has found herself in hot water lately as she remarked in an interview that she too would like to see Stranger Things adopt some of the qualities that Game of Thrones demonstrated while it was on the air. As detailed by Collider, Brown expressed interest in seeing some of the principal cast of her show killed off in a future season, similar to that of Ned Stark or the Red Wedding sequence in Game of Thrones. With a lot of edge-of-your-seat moments in Stranger Things, there haven’t been a lot of high-profile deaths that have occurred, so Brown may have a point here. However, the Duffer brothers have weighed in on this controversy, fit with a hilarious statement that IGN later posted on Twitter.

Speaking on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, the Duffer brothers replied in real-time to Millie Bobby Brown’s death wishes by characterizing Stranger Things as a show with Midwestern values rather than a bloodbath often seen on Games of Thrones. Taking the fictional town of Hawkins, Indiana out of the equation by saying it is nothing like the fictional Westeros of George R. R. Martin’s fantasy drama, viewers of Stranger Things are meant to root for the main characters onscreen than hoping they will die gruesome deaths. After all, a large percentage of the characters are played by young actors who many fans have grown to love since the series debuted in 2016.

While Stranger Things has demonstrated danger and uncertainty with every tortuous run-in with Vecna and Demogorgons, there doesn’t seem to be a need to kill off beloved characters in the fifth and final season of the show. Matt and Ross Duffer’s funny response to Millie Bobby Brown may be enjoyable banter among colleagues, but the loyal fanbase of the series may not want to see Brown’s wishes come true. Even if some characters like Jim Hopper have seemingly been spared over the years, the showrunners don’t seem too interested in making sure their valued creations die to satisfy a bloodthirsty need from those wishing the show was more like Game of Thrones.