The strangest thing in "Stranger Things" might just be the story of how a small-town police chief used a sword to kill a monster in a Russian prison, but there's more to this moment than meets the eye. How did this prop help David Harbour get into barbarian mode? Warning – spoilers ahead.
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00:00The strangest thing in Stranger Things might just be the story of how a small-town police
00:05chief used a sword to kill a monster in a Russian prison, but there's more to this
00:09moment than meets the eye.
00:11How did this prop help David Harbour get into barbarian mode?
00:14Warning, spoilers ahead.
00:16The fourth season of Stranger Things might be the best yet, with plenty of wildly unforgettable
00:21moments.
00:22Chief among them might be when David Harbour's Hopper finds a conveniently placed sword in
00:27a Russian prison, and uses it to decapitate a Demogorgon.
00:31It's pretty badass, and well-deserved considering how much pain and suffering the character
00:35goes through in season four.
00:37He is held at a Russian prison, tortured, and is put through hell in his attempts to
00:42escape.
00:43With a little help from his friends, Hopper's journey culminates in an epic battle when
00:46he picks up a sword against one of the Upside Down's most menacing, bloodthirsty creatures,
00:51the Demogorgon.
00:52The sword was previously wielded by actor Arnold Schwarzenegger in the epic film series
00:57Conan the Barbarian, revealed David Harbour in an interview with GQ magazine.
01:02I don't know if you saw this, but that sword I pick up?
01:04It's the actual prop sword they used in Conan the Barbarian.
01:07It's the sword that Schwarzenegger swings in the movie.
01:11At first glance, Conan and Hopper are two characters that don't have much in common.
01:15After all, Conan is famous for a very specific perspective on what is best in life.
01:21To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentation of their
01:26women.
01:27Meanwhile, Hopper is much more of the loving father figure of the Stranger Things family.
01:31But considering the ease with which Hopper lops off the demonic creature's head, maybe
01:35the former police chief has more in common with Schwarzenegger's jacked barbarian hero
01:39than it appears.
01:40Naturally, for a star on the 80s-obsessed Stranger Things, this isn't Harbour's
01:45first brush with classic 80s fantasy memorabilia.
01:48One of Harbour's most prized possessions, he says, is a poster for Masters of the Universe,
01:53the 1987 fantasy-adventure movie starring Dolph Lundgren as He-Man, a powerful and frequently
01:59bare-chested warrior who, with the help of two teenagers from Earth, must save the universe
02:04from his arch-enemy, Skeletor.
02:06Released at the height of the 80s fantasy craze, Masters of the Universe was a critical
02:10and commercial disaster.
02:12But it's since gained a cult following, along with Harbour's fond appreciation,
02:16in particular for the performance by one of his acting idols, Frank Langella, Harbour
02:20told Architectural Digest during a tour of his home in 2019.
02:24I just like the fact that a really great actor that I admire could do a film in full prosthetics
02:31that wasn't received very well.
02:33I understood that reference.
02:36Now it's all come full circle for Harbour, who got to play out his 80s adventure fantasies
02:40in a show about 80s nostalgia and get praised for his acting while he did it.
02:44While it may seem like Hopper's sword somehow appeared out of thin air, the prop was actually
02:48first established in the seventh episode of Stranger Things.
02:52If you'll go back, you will see that it was initially used by a not-so-lucky prisoner
02:56near the cells at the side of the gladiatorial pit, after their big Hansel and Gretel-style
03:00feast was thrown by the Russians.
03:03The seventh episode shows that the sword was just one of the many weapons locked away in
03:07a case on the wall, given to prisoners to battle the monster after the feast.
03:11Unfortunately, the poor guy who picked up the sword before Hopper wasn't as lucky.
03:16Since so many fans missed the sword when it first appeared, Harbour himself later took
03:20to his Instagram profile to point out the sword's first appearance.
03:24While this little tidbit does solve the mystery of how Hopper randomly found a sword at the
03:28prison, it still doesn't explain why this particular sword was there in the first place.
03:32Sure, the guards clearly enjoy giving the prisoners a fighting chance against the Demogorgon,
03:37but this particular sword has a distinctive design.
03:40Was there a local blacksmith in town that was a huge fan of the 1982 Conan the Barbarian
03:44movie or its 1984 sequel Conan the Destroyer?
03:48Since season 4 of Stranger Things takes place in 1986, the timeline would check out, provided
03:53the USSR had access to Schwarzenegger movies.
03:56On the other hand, maybe this is actually the same sword that appeared in the movie,
04:00setting up a sneaky crossover between an 80s icon and an 80s set show made 30 years later.
04:06Most likely, it was just a fun easter egg for fans to notice.
04:09But don't be surprised if you see Hopper newly muscled up in season 5, just like the
04:14sword's previous wielder.