David Harbor has revealed that the sword he wielded in the Stranger Things finale is the same weapon used by Arnold Schwarzenegger in the Conan films.
The 47-year-old actor, who plays Jim Hopper on Netflix’s supernatural thriller show, took to Instagram on Monday to reveal the surprise crossover.
In episode nine of the fourth series of Stranger Things, Hopper and Joyce Byers (Winona Ryder) face a deadly Demogorgon in a Russian prison after one survives their plan to capture and kill the beasts.
Easter Egg: David Harbor has revealed that the sword he wielded in the Stranger Things finale is the same weapon used by Arnold Schwarzenegger in the Conan films
Hopper reaches to the ground and picks up a sword – left there after a prisoner used the weapon to fight the monster in a previous episode – before valiantly fighting the Demogorgon with it.
And actor David has now revealed that the sword was the same prop used by Arnold Schwarzenegger in the 1982 film Conan the Barbarian and its sequel Conan the Destroyer.
The original Conan film is an epic sword and sorcery film in which the character sets out to find the wizard responsible for the genocide of his family.
In a lengthy caption, David said he was “honored” to “wielding” the recognizable sword, which he joked was “hard as hell,” as he asked 74-year-old Arnold for tips on his “technique.”
Sword: David said the sword was the same prop used by Arnold Schwarzenegger in the 1982 film Conan the Barbarian and its sequel Conan the Destroyer
He wrote: “Nerd alert. The prop at the end of Episode 9 is the Atlantean Sword from the CONAN movies.
“A lovely fan found a still from the time it was set up in episode 7 and used by an unfortunate inmate who met an early death near the cells next to our gladiator pit.
“However, the real excitement behind this is that the sword that the incredible ST props department gave me (reveal yourself guys so I can give you credit) is THE ACTUAL SWORD used in the filming of both CONAN films became.
“It was hard as hell and it was such an honor to do it. @schwarzenegger – ready to accept your comments on my technique.’
Combat: In episode nine of Stranger Things series four, Hopper and Joyce Byers (Winona Ryder) face a deadly Demogorgon in a Russian prison, and Hopper battles the beast with the sword
Crossover: The 47-year-old actor, who plays Jim Hopper on Netflix’s supernatural thriller show, took to Instagram on Monday to reveal the surprise crossover
Devoted fans loved the Easter egg and shared in the comments their disbelief that the cast was allowed to use the actual Conan prop.
One wrote: “This scene was absolutely PHENOMENAL!!”
Another said: “Oh my god! I swear you’re all just looking for ways to make this show cooler than it already is!!!!! how amazing!!!!’
A third commented: “How’s that for an Easter egg.”
And a fourth added: “My favorite scene in the finale! Our whole family cheered!’
Impressed: Devoted fans were wowed by the crossover and took to the comments section to share their disbelief at being allowed to use the actual prop
Weapon: Stranger Things viewers had expressed their confusion as to where the sword had come from, but it was previously seen in episode seven (pictured).
Others joked that they thought it was Godric Gryffindor’s sword from the Harry Potter films because it appeared “out of nowhere”.
The sword’s sudden appearance had fans comparing it to the weapon first seen in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets appearing in distress to rightful Gryffindors, including Harry and Neville Longbottom at various points in time.
Stranger Things viewers had previously expressed their confusion as to where the sword had come from when it appeared off the ground seemingly out of nowhere.
But the sword was already seen in the seventh episode, when Hopper and his fellow prisoners had to take up arms to fight the Demogorgon to the death.
In a subtle background shot, a prisoner could be seen grabbing the sword before heading into the enclosed room for the fight, leaving the sword on the floor after the fight until Hopper picked it up again in the season finale.
Off the hook: It comes after the Stranger Things writers revealed Hopper and Joyce’s kiss was “not scripted” as stars Winona and David improvised the moment in the finale
It comes after Stranger Things writers revealed Hopper and Joyce’s kiss was “unscripted” as stars Winona and David improvised the moment in the finale.
Hopper and Joyce shared their first kiss while in Russia trying to escape from the labor camp and fight the Demogorgon monsters.
But Stranger Things stars Winona Ryder and David Harbor added in a second steamy moment that wasn’t scripted – finally giving fans what they wanted.
Big moment: Stranger Things Hopper and Joyce shared their first kiss while in Russia while escaping the Russian labor camp and the Demogorgon monsters
The verified Stranger Things Twitter account revealed, “This kiss wasn’t scripted, Winona and David added it on the day of filming.”
On Friday, Netflix crashed as fans around the world rushed to Stranger Things following the highly anticipated release of the final two episodes of season four.
The overwhelming influx of viewers has pushed Netflix beyond capacity, leaving thousands of angry subscribers with technical issues.
More than 13,000 users complained about bugs around 3 a.m. EST on Friday — just moments after episodes started on the streaming service, DownDetector reported.
The show’s fourth installment had already set the record as the No. 1 English-language series on Netflix after the first seven episodes were released on May 27.
Stranger Things 4 Volume 1 garnered 930.3 million hours of streaming viewership in its first 28 days on Netflix, breaking a record previously held by Bridgerton, another platform original series.
Given the initial success of Stranger Things 4, it should come as no surprise that dedicated fans anxiously counting down the new episodes have overloaded Netflix.
The entire platform was down on Friday, returning a message telling subscribers that “this site isn’t working.” Another message instructed viewers, “Please try again later.”
Fan-Favourites: The show’s stars Winona Ryder and David Harbor added a second steamy moment that wasn’t written during the final episode of season four